The Ohio Academy of Family Physicians (OAFP) strongly opposes House Bill 248 (HB 248), the Enact Vaccine Choice and Anti-Discrimination Act that dramatically alters Ohio’s current immunization laws in ways that threaten the health and safety of Ohio’s children and families. The OAFP has joined a coalition of children’s hospitals, health plans, and the Ohio Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics to oppose this bill.
The message delivered by this coalition to members of the Ohio House Health Committee is:
- This legislation puts ALL Ohio children at risk both now and in the future by destroying our current public health framework that has been built over decades to quickly respond to and prevent outbreaks of potentially lethal diseases – such as measles, meningitis, tuberculosis, and hepatitis.
- This legislation is broad and prohibits requiring any and all childhood vaccines. It removes the key motivating factor for parents to take their children to regular well care visits – which will have catastrophic, long-term effects on both the mental and physical health of children and adolescents. It also prohibits any entity from requiring masks for entry for any reason – including hospitals.
- Ohio already has some of the most lenient vaccination requirements in the country – parents can currently opt out of ANY vaccinations (including COVID-19, flu, etc.) for any reason – medical, religious, philosophical, etc. This bill will go even further prohibiting schools and childcare providers from requesting vaccination records and even prohibits parents from voluntarily submitting these records.
- HB 248-11 will systematically dismantle the childhood vaccination program in our state – and will have catastrophic long-term ramifications for Ohio’s health outcomes, workforce, and vitality.
- This legislation, if passed will cause severe disruption to our state’s health, economy, and way of life.
Coalition members urgently plea that HB 248-11 be rejected, to protect the vitality of Ohio’s children and families and avoid disastrous consequences for the future of our state.