Resolution In Support Of Repealing California's Personal Beliefs Exemption To Mandatory Vaccinations

WHEREAS, California law permits parents to opt out of vaccinating their children simply by stating a personal belief against vaccination, even if such a belief is based on misinformation about the effects of vaccines, which has led to a doubling in the rate of unvaccinated children in the last seven years, with over a quarter of California kindergartens having vaccination rates below the threshold the CDC says is needed to maintain herd immunity against measles; and,

WHEREAS, California experienced an outbreak of over 100 cases of measles between December 2014 and February 2015, an outbreak that has been definitively linked to a declining rate of vaccinations,

WHEREAS, the California Democratic Party has always stood for a belief in science and the protection of the most vulnerable in our society, and repealing the personal belief exemption from mandatory vaccinations would leave intact exemptions for medical and religious reasons,

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the California Democratic Party supports the repeal of the personal beliefs exemption to California’s vaccination requirements, and

THEREFORE BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the California Democratic Party send a copy of this resolution to Governor Jerry Brown and to the Democratic members of the State Senate and State Assembly.

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