2021-07-12 00:00:00 - Joint Committee on Public Health
2021-07-12 00:00:00 - Joint Committee on Public Health
(Part 2 of 5)
[Part 2]
APRIL ??? - CONCERNED CITIZEN - HB 2411 - HB 2271 - SB 1571 - I'm opposing H 2411 H 2271 and S 1571. I am a Christian. I am a mother of a vaccine injured child. I am a teacher and a nontoxic living educator. I've had 10 years of independent education in virology. That's 10 more years than a pediatrician, medical doctor or anyone involved in writing these bills. Vaccines are not safe or effective. The safety has been settled, settled on unsafe. Vaccine-packed package inserts and vaccine adverse event reporting system says they are not safe. My perfectly healthy child was forever changed by these so called safe vaccines. He was disabled and has an IEP for 11 years now. I work with special needs families and I hear them often discussed their child's injury, even death. It is not uncommon.
With that type of risk there must always be choice. What will your legacy be in this matter? Us parents are not going away. We will not let our children forget the names and the faces of those who stole the education that they have a right to as well as their rights to religious choices. They will forever carry these acts of discrimination against them. Please do not be known as someone who took the services of thousands of special needs children. It's against my religion to allow my child to be injected again with that, which has96 harmed him. There is no real proof that religious exemptions are being99 falsified though that100 keeps coming up as a tool used to discriminate against us. Suicide is proven common when kids are kicked out of school. Taking religious exemptions will cause suicide deaths. A religious exemption never has.
Those using immunocompromised people as a tool to push these bills, please stop. Most immuno compromised people can and do vaccinate. I am respectfully asking you to stop using them as a tool to push these bills on the parents in Massachusetts. Almost all religions are against changing the human body and not following one's moral code to do what is right for their child140 in this case means avoiding toxic chemicals. Today, you will hear from pediatricians and other doctors who might146 support these bills. Remember it's incredibly hard to be unbiased when you financially gain152 from pharmaceuticals and are not liable for the death or the injury156 due to those vaccines. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Thank you very much. I just remind everyone to please put yourself on mute Miss Murphy. Um, I see you not a mute. I'm going to move on and call the next um series of testifying as these folks signed up to speak to H 2271 and as 15 17. Um, and I'll call individuals in groups um, so that you have some on deck notice. Um So the188 first group is Kirsten Williams, Bonnie, Manila, Alison, chapman Julia King and Alyssa Gonzalez in that order. So Kirsten Williams please.
Yeah. Uh huh. Sorry. Hi. I'm just trying to turn on my camera. Well, can you see me? Well someone might be able to on teams. We don't see the full view, but I trust your cameras on and um yep. Thank you.
CHERSTIN WILLIAMS - CONCERNED CITIZEN - HB 2271 - SB 1517 - All right, good afternoon chairs and members of the Public Health committee. Today I'm testifying against the bills to remove religious exemptions and or severely restrict them. Before having children every job I ever had included working special needs children in some capacity I was a preschool teacher, a one on one aid for children on the autism spectrum and a speech and language pathologist assistant which included providing services to Children on IEPs. I know just how much Children and parents rely on public schools to help these Children reach their full potential. This past year proved just how quickly Children can fall behind when there is a loss of education and despite every educator's best efforts, there simply is no substitution for any person learning, especially for those with special needs.
I wish I had the time today to go point by point through the bills and explain in detail just how extensively they will negatively affect my family. But with only three minutes to speak, I'd like to share that when my daughter was six months old, I put her on a waiting list with one of the very few doctors that are even willing to see under-vaccinated patients. I received a call six years later that they finally had a spot for her. When I gave them my insurance information, they told me they didn't accept it and we were out of luck. During those six years we waited the only practice I could find that would respect our religious rights without harassment and degrading my morals as a parent was close to an hour away. It's a private practice that doesn't accept insurance and charges a monthly premium.
Without anywhere else to go this was301 the route we chose an unexpected financial burden, but one we had to make work. The Community Immunity Act requires religious exemptions to be signed off on by309 a patient's doctor seeking to track the few practitioners who are even willing to see314 our children. This bullying tactic will undoubtedly encourage doctors to kick out any patients not up to date with the current schedule for fear of being trapped and put on a list. This would be a public health threat in its own right, leaving thousands of children without medical care. My children are not sick and they can't spread something that they aren't carrying. As you all already know and have heard several times today, Massachusetts337 has the highest vaccination rate in the country voluntarily and without coercion.
Please listen to all the testimonies against these bills today and protect the 1% of religious minorities who are simply asking to be protected and following their morally formed conscious as you351 would any other minority group. Lastly, on a personal note, I just355 like to share that since the introduction of these bills two years ago, there isn't a day that goes by that I don't experience panic, fear, anxiety and stress. My overall mental health and well-being has been severely affected.
There are many367 nights I lie in bed or hide in the bathroom during the day so that my kids don't see me crying because I don't know what the future will look like for them or whether or not they'll be treated as second-class citizens without the same basic rights as their peers. I can't even imagine what the conversation will look like should the day come that I have to look them in the eyes and tell them that they're banned from the same activities as their friends and that the state of Massachusetts has chosen to violate their oath to protect their religious rights. Please do not pass these discriminatory bills out of committee. Thank you.
SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Thank you for your testimony, Bonnie Manila, please. Thank you.
Thank you for your testimony, Bonnie Manila, please.
BONNIE MANILA - CONCERNED CITIZEN - SB 1517 - HB 2411 - Hi, I'm sorry this is, I'm sorry, this is why I'm not doing a personal testimony, but I am414 going to review some of the relevant data in opposition to S 1517 and 2411. Another speaker will show you that exemptions are not the main contributing factor to schools that are below hard immunity. Current law states students must either provide documentation of compliance with the required immunization schedule or submit a religious or medical exemption. However, that is currently attending schools referred to by DPH as the gap population. These students are Children who are attending school with neither a record vaccination nor an exemption on file. This 2019 graph, which we will send you of the data illustrates how this gap population compares to the exemption population.
The kindergarten gap percentage over the last several years in orange compared to the exemption percentage in blue. A gap population is on the decline, but it is still significantly470 larger than the exemption population. In fact, 85% of kindergartners that have any vaccination below hard community have a gap population larger than the exemption population. The same graph with seventh-grade data shows the gap population is even more significant. Yet these bills are primarily targeting the rights of students with exemptions. So who is this gap population? The question should be the starting point when looking for measures to resolve any vaccine vaccination issues in Massachusetts.
The gap includes vaccinated500 students who are missing records, students on catch up schedules and students who have proof of immunity without a507 vaccination record. However, it is also inclusive of a significant population of students who are simply attending school without that paperwork. The largest gap populations are in Suffolk County, where barriers to vaccination access or lack of enforcement resources may be521 substantial contributing factors to lower vaccination rates. Without knowing and understanding the main reason why a small number of schools have vaccination rates below hard immunity531 thresholds it is irresponsible for the legislature to try to address the issue, which leads us to the next point. How significant is this issue?
If you listen541 to press from the sponsors, you might think we were at the height of545 an ever-worsening problem. You might think that more and more schools are falling below hard immunity thresholds Putting communities across Massachusetts at risk. Again, we must turn to the data. This graph details the percentage of kindergartens over the last several years that fell below hard immunity. For any vaccination, you will see there is a significant decline from 26% to 11% over a six-year period. A 60% decline is not a coincidence. This is an issue that Massachusetts DPH is actively addressing with success as they already have the authority to do. Schools following below hard immunity is579 not a growing problem that Massachusetts needs costly and discriminatory legislation to address. Thank you. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Thank you very very much. Um, the next person is Alison chapman please. Mm Hi. Hi. Hi Senator. How are you? Um, can you hear me? Yep. I can. Thank you so much. Okay. Um,
ALLISON CHAPMAN - HEALTH CHOICE 4 ACTION - HB 2411 - HB 2271 - SB 1517 - Thank you chairs and members of the committee for allowing me to testify against bills H 2411, H 2271 and S 1517. In the lyrics of Nina Simone, I wish I could share all the love that's in my heart, remove all the bars that keep us apart. I wish you could know what it means to be me and then you'd see and agree that every man should be free. Excuse me, Cherstin got me going. My three children experience continual reactions, convulsions, high fevers, full body rashes, seizures and my son developed neurological regression. He is now my beautiful forever child. My mother was in the hospital for three months with metabolic encephalopathy after a flu shot. These are the events that formed my catholic moral conscience. Regardless of party or beliefs parents and guardians are the first responders for every family, every nice grapes, sniffle seizure, every triumph, every torture.
Individuals and families deserve the rights to their own body and medical consent without680 coercion. Education is the greatest equalizer and removing it is the biggest public health threat of all. Over the last two decades, advocating for inclusion, endless medical issues, individualized education needs and our faith I've also692 had to keep my kids safe. My son with special needs has a lack of appropriate communication or understanding of cause and effect. He is on project lifesaver for continually trying to escape the house school everywhere. This is a kind of PTSD I can never simply explain in a three minute testimony. I advocate for others as well. And regularly see the bias against anyone who uses an exemption a lot today as well. Derogatory terms, exclusion and fear lead to this bias and increased discrimination.
We received complaints this year of Children and parents both saying no to vaccines and the Children alone in rooms with doctors were further pressured until they said yes. They said no. Last August we lost my beloved brother735 tragically to AIDS. Um he was born with HIV and he struggled with so many medical complications spending much of his life in pain. What was the happiest young child people before us fought against discrimination and the fear of catching diseases so that he could go to school and not be excluded. When he was older, we all watched people treating them differently when they knew their own personal bias and fear was cruel. It was cruel when they knew that he had AIDS.
Children with exemptions are not carrying something they were not exposed765 to. We have the exclusion protocol in place to prevent school spread and we have the770 highest rate of vaccination in the country. Medical exemptions are dangerously restrictive already these bills are fully discriminatory and I urge you to strongly oppose them and remember the long history in assachusetts of protecting their rights against this discrimination. My kids are immune compromised. They would suffer. Thank you. Sorry, I apologize.
SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
No apologies necessary. Thanks for your testimony. Julia King, please.
JULIA KING - CONCERNED CITIZEN - HB 2411 - SB 1517 - HB 2271 - Good afternoon chairs and committee members on public health. My name is Julia King. I am here to testify in opposition to proposed bills H 2411 S 1517 and its companion bill H 2271. Growing up I always dreamed of becoming a parent in 2016 that became a welcome reality. What I never imagined was that I'd be here today defending my children's constitutional, religious and medical freedoms as well as my own. H 2411 would eliminate the religious exemption to828 vaccinations for public, private and college university level schools. Compulsory vaccination in order to receive a constitutionally protected education can only be described as coercion.837 It forces those who are religiously opposed to some or all vaccines to comply or lose access to an education system funded by our collective tax dollars.
Home schooling would be the only alternative which is unrealistic for many, especially those of tougher socioeconomic status. It is incorrect to assume no religion opposes vaccination. Individually You are not required to adhere to any specific theology, nor are you required to austerely follow the totality of its principles. Our own Massachusetts constitution states quote. It is the right as well as the duty of all men in society publicly and at stated seasons to worship the supreme being the great creator and preserver of the universe and no subjects shall be hurt, molested or restrained in his person, Liberty or a state for worshiping God in the manner and season most agreeable to the dictates of his own conscience. End quote.
While Bills S 1517 and H 2271 appeared to maintain some form of the religious exemption they do not prevent private schools or programs from discriminating against someone with an exemption. They allow minors to consent to vaccination without their parent's knowledge or consent and without an evaluation of the minor's intellectual capacity to understand their true risks versus benefits. These bills keep a minor's medical records sealed from the parents. This is reckless. It endangers the health of the minor and creates room for911 significant medical errors. They may also require you to get a doctor or religious leader's signature on your religious exemption. I will not make it my doctor's business to examine or approve of my religious921 beliefs. That is not their job. Nor is it the job of the state to use medical professionals or religious leaders as gatekeepers to an individual's education.
Trying to force compliance to a schedule of liability-free products that carry unavoidable risks through coercion is unethical and simply won't work. It will only drive children that deserve an education out of schools. Further the distrust in an industry already surrounded by controversy and create division within our communities. We all want healthy children, but a one size fits all policy in regards948 to vaccination, ignores the fact that some Children will undoubtedly be harmed by this intervention. I understand these are difficult decisions you legislators are faced with. As a parent I can tell you any decisions we make for our Children are weighed with even more scrutiny as they directly affect our own flesh and blood.
I'm not asking you to take a stance on whether or not you agree with some or all vaccines and their ever increasing schedules. I'm asking you to protect our inherent rights codified in our state and federal constitutions to receive an education and freely practice our religions. I am lucky enough I wouldn't have to compromise my Children's health or religious convictions because I'm able to homeschool, albeit under duress. At worst, my family would consider moving to985 a state that respects and maintains religious freedoms, medical and parental choice. I respectfully ask989 you not to990 vote these bills out of committee and thank you for your time and sincere consideration on these life altering matters. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Thank you so much, Miss King. Um, we have a little snafu here. You may have shared your screen. Oh, sorry. Hey,
we'll sort that out. Next up is a list of Gonzalez please.
I'm here. Can you hear me? I can. Yes. And after Alyssa, I'm just going to call the next list. Um, we have Laura Nagatsuka, forgive me if I mispronounced that Don Nanny Amanda Diaz Christine Georgia, Rian and Ashley Murphy. Okay, over to you, Alyssa.
ALYSSA GONZALEZ - CONCERNED CITIZEN - HB 2271 - HB 2411 - SB 1517 - Thank you so much. My name is Melissa Gonzalez. I am from Gardner. I'm a mother of three. I oppose bills S 1517, H 2271 H 2411. These bills will put Massachusetts families under extremely hard circumstances, financially, mentally and emotionally. Families are concerned whether they will have to choose between providing financially or providing academically. How do you honestly tell your child or children they have to choose between food on the table or an education. This is the exact circumstance these bills put on the table for thousands of households. The Boston Globe this past weekend released an article and I do our due to read it titled school vaccination requirements may lead to further health disparities.
It states quote even more threatening to many parents the Community Immunity Act would allow vaccination without parental consent Even if a child is young or intellectually disabled. Parents would never know since these medical records would be hidden unless court ordered to be released or the child provided written consent. The provision is right for errors and abuses and Children experiencing adverse events might be unable to access the appropriate medical care. We believe parents would be astonished by this possibility. End quote. This is a powerful statement and frankly, it's quite terrifying. Informed consent is vital and a basic human right. The Community Immunity Act will add bureaucracy, where it does not belong Healthcare and religion.
The Massachusetts legislature has balanced religious liberty and public health for decades. We have the highest vaccination rates and I request1132 that you protect all doctor patient relationships. It is imperative that we continue to protect the rights and freedoms of all Massachusetts people without conversion discrimination or segregation. This is not a political problem. This is a humanitarian problem biased against families who are unable to participate in certain medical procedures due to medical or religious conflict, is creating a very divisive environment and climate. We are mocked, harassed, bullied and humiliated. The government insists on continuing to disregard the fact that1165 vaccines do come with risk in that vaccine injury does exist. It is this denial that is causing vaccine hesitancy. I sit here today to request the committee to protect these constitutional and inalienable rights of all people and I ask this committee to report these bills out as unfavorable. Thank you for your time. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
You're on with that for sure. Can't hear you.
Um you did
mm you're still muted.
Okay. Someone maybe muting me. So I'm1224 sorry, I am not doing that on my own. Um I'm not sure how much you heard from me earlier. Um really important comments by MS Gonzalez. However, the boston globe piece was an op-ed not an article. So there is a distinction there. Um Next up please. We have laura knock Asuka please. Also, just as a reminder, um this committee takes questions from committee members. So if you have your hand up, we're going to lower it if you're not. um If you're not a member of the Joint Committee on Public Health, so laura please, you're up next.
LAURA NAKASUKA - CONCERNED CITIZEN - Senator Comerford Uh Members of the committee I am writing. I'm speaking in favor of all the bills that promote vaccination in every way. I want to speak about the real basics. For years I took care of a family member who had polio six months before the vaccination came out. He was a quadriplegic. He was barely able to move three of his limbs. He could move the little finger on one hand, he could feed himself. He had a wonderful voice and a witty mind but he could not toilet himself. He could not dress himself. And I want you to think about the basics. You know, you may hear that so many people survive such and such disorder but think about the disability that can be prevented with vaccine. Please,1338 I am begging you do everything1342 you can to promote vaccine usage.
When I read about measles causing deafness, I think about how Helen Keller said that blindness cuts you off from things but deafness cuts you off from people. Don't condemn children to that kind of disability I'm begging you please. This comes from years of having taken care of a quadriplegic family member who could have been saved this disability and lived an entirely different life if he had the vaccine six months later than his illness. I'm saying please please protect children from disability through preventable diseases. I am saying please prevent illness from being transmitted to other family members. It's very likely that this family member infected, his brother who had a hoarse voice all his life. And this family member died at 53 probably from preventable. Thank you. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Thank you so much. Thank you for your testimony. Um, next up please, we have Don nanny Amanda Diaz. Christine George Rian and Ashley Murphy. Don. Are you on
okay? Amanda Amanda Diaz.
Okay. Christine Georgia, Rian. I'm here. I'm don Lonnie, I'm here. Someone keeps muting me.1476 I'm here. Okay. Very good. Done. Uh, just as a reminder friends. Um, if you are muting folks a little bit rogue, if you've gone rogue and commuting, that's super not helpful. Um, just to give you a little visibility, There's four, there's 340 people still live left to testify on this bill alone and every time we take seconds, that's seconds longer until we1501 get to you. And so we really want to get to you. That's, that's our promise. The chair and I in the committee. Um, so, and one other thing is if you're on teams and you've already spoken, um, complete respectfully asking you to, to watch on the livestream, um, it'll make teams a little less. Um, onerous for all of us. Okay, Don over to you. Thank you.
DAWN NANNY - CONCERNED CITIZEN - HB 2411 - Thank you for hearing my testimony in opposition of House Bill 2411. As parents, our priority is raising our children to be kind, bright and thriving humans for a promising and prosperous future. This should not be burdened or minimized by parents having to spend time and energy fighting for the most basic of our God given freedoms. House Bill 2411 is unnecessary and demonstrates systemic bias against those with different religious beliefs. Roughly 1% of the state's population utilizes religious exemption. Where is the emergency and the need to remove this freedom. Children have a right to an education regardless of their or their family's religious beliefs. As stated in the Massachusetts constitution no law shall be passed prohibiting the free exercise of religion. Segregation due to religious creed is prejudice unethical and unreasonable.
My overall mental health has been impacted daily since this legislation was introduced. I live in fear daily wondering if my children are going to be forced out of school and denied an education based on our religion. The 1% of families who utilize religious exemptions are bullied, labeled and targeted. Why, why aren't we being protected, respected, valued the same way other minority groups are in the state? As elected government officials. Please stop trying to take our freedoms away and vote no on these harmful, discriminatory and destructive bills. Religion used1621 to be respected and valued back when our leaders acknowledged God's more powerful than themselves existed. Thank you. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Thank you for your testimony. Um, so now we're going to see if Amanda1640 is here. I'm here. Okay,
AMANDA DIAZ - HB 2411 - HB 2271 - SB 1517 - Thank you. I am here today to testify in opposition of bills H 2411, H 2271 and S 1517. In regards to H 2411 the state of Massachusetts has the highest vaccination rates in the country. Only 1% of the vaccinated or under vaccinated children use the religious exemption. We have not had any outbreaks of disease caused by unvaccinated children and we do have protocols in place should an outbreak occur. We do not have a vaccination problem in the commonwealth. The commonwealth is the birthplace of religious freedom. As the mother of a child with special needs bills H 2271 and S 1517 are extremely concerning. The Community Immunity Act would allow vaccination without parental consent to young Children and those with intellectual disabilities.
Children like my son with neurological disabilities may not know their complete medical history or their family history. This does not allow for the true informed consent. I've worked in clinical risk management for over 13 years and this is very concerning that any physician would be willing to perform a medical treatment on a child without parental knowledge or informed consent when there is not a medical emergency. The burden of protection should not be placed on our children. These bills are unnecessary and will strip constituents of their religious freedoms, bodily autonomy, and the ability for parents to make health care decisions for their children. If these bills pass my child who has autism would be denied the education he is entitled to. He would lose the social interaction in school supports he needs in order to thrive. I hope you take this into consideration and1751 choose to oppose these bills and vote no. Thank you. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Thank you so much. Christine Georgia in please.
This is Christine. Can you hear me? I can. Okay, great, thank you.
CHRISTINE GEORGIA - CONCERNED CITIZEN - HB 2271 - SB 1517 - Good afternoon members of the Public Health Committee. I appreciate the opportunity to testify today. As a1777 member of the medical community, a registered nurse for over 40 years I'm here testifying against these bills S 1517 and H 2271. The1785 bills' sponsor claims the bill will authorize the DPH to collect and publish immunization data. So is this fact or fiction? Fiction. DPH is already authorized to collect and publish immunization data. All immunization data is available on the mass.gov website, including current school by school data. The only thing the bill will do is force DPH to publish the data of small schools putting medically fragile children and religious minorities at greater risk for targeting and discrimination. As part of current DPH policy records of schools with less1818 than 30 students are not publicly available.
The mandates in the Community Immunity Act would supersede this DPH policy and1824 require these small schools to publish exemption rates as the bill only sites applicable laws, not policies, as a means of protecting student privacy. The sponsor asserts that per these privacy laws personally identifying information would not be disclosed. However, it is naive to believe that parents driven by fear would not seek to learn what children had exemptions, particularly in schools with small populations. The bill's sponsor has further asserted that parents may not know if their child's school or summer camp is below hard immunity rates for a disease. She would like DPH to send notices to families to at schools who fall below hard immunity thresholds. Is this fact or fiction? Both.
Again, families who are concerned about immunization rates already have the ability to look up their schools rates on mass.gov. Mandating additional notification to parents of children in these schools will create unnecessary anxiety and fear and increase the likelihood of discrimination and bullying of medically fragile and religious minority children. The sponsor states that parents deserve to know if their children are exposed to elevated risk. However, law dictates that parents often do not have a right to know. For instance, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 protects the confidentiality of and against discrimination towards students who are carriers of communicable diseases such as HIV Hepatitis1904 B or tuberculosis.
The sponsor makes no attempt to explain why children with communicable diseases are entitled to1912 confidentiality protection but children who do not have communicable diseases but are not immunized against them are not. The commonwealth and schools have at their disposal more than adequate quarantine protocols to protect against secondary transmission of infections. Finally, the sponsor has stated that the bill has a direct funding mechanism through the vaccination trust fund to provide DPH with the resources it needs to implement this bill. This statement again is not entirely factual. The bill does alter Sections 24N of Chapter 111 pertaining to the vaccination purchase trust fund, with the goal of allowing a portion of the funds to be used to administer the Community Immunity Act. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Thank you very much for your testimony. Just a couple of things. And chair Decker said this earlier. The testimony should be directed about the bill, not the bill sponsored right? We're talking about the legislation, not the sponsor of the legislation here today. Um and I'll just just want to make sure because I think david data privacy is exceedingly important. This bill has numbers of layers of data privacy provisions in it actually stronger than current law. So because I know people care about that, I just want to make sure that that we have that out. Um Next on deck we have Ashley murph Murphy, Kathleen Howarth um lisa Ottavio Ottaviano. Sorry if I mispronounced Janice Hudson, Ashley reed sarah sun. So we're gonna try for Ashley Murphy please.
Especially are you with us?
Excuse me? I just want to make sure it's asked or do you not? Andrea Murphy. I have Ashley Murphy. Um Are you? Andrea Murphy?
Missing them? You are OK mrs Murphy. If you can hang tight I'll do a little research, I'll call the next person. I'll do a little research and I'll make sure that it's not Andrea Murphy. Um Thank you. Thank you so much. I appreciate you asking. Uh So Kathleen howard? Are you there?
Yes I'm here. Can you hear me? Yes I can, Kathleen, you're you're good to go and I'll circle back to MS Murphy. Alright.
KATHLEEN HAWORTH- CONCERNED CITIZEN - HB 2411 - My name is Kathleen Howard from the parent of four children in the mass public school system. I'm here today to ask you to oppose H 2411. A bill to remove the religious exemption. My Children have had all the required vaccinations to enter school. In 2019 I had a severe reaction to the Tdap vaccine. My left leg became numb and then the pain set in unbearable pain throughout my entire leg. MRI ultrasound Physical therapy neurologist My doctor had no information to give2080 me. I'm on my feet for work and most often more often times than not I go to bed with my leg propped up on a pillow because it is throbbing. I live this every day. Fast forward to when my oldest2089 son was due for the Tdap booster I was not comfortable giving that to him, not knowing how this would affect his body. He was 12 now 13, going through puberty.
My doctor nor his pediatrician do not have any information to give me whether this will happen to him or any of my other Children. My husband, myself and his pediatrician came to the decision that he would not2106 be given that2107 vaccination at this time until I could figure out what happened to me. Not all families are the same, not all people will react the same way. This decision was made for my family and my Children due to our individual circumstances and that is why respecting the doctor patient relationship is so important. When2121 searching for information to aid in making that decision, I've realized that vaccine injury is just not studied the way it should be. More often time to swept under the rug and not associated with the vaccine because the doctor does not have the clinical background to make the connection and there are many injuries outside of the scope the CDC recognizes.
Now I am here today opposing a bill that will kick my children out of school after sixth grade for not having one dose of one vaccine. They will remain in the community being able to go everywhere else and do everything else except receive a public education. Saving them from what2150 could be a lifetime of pain beginning at 12 years old as my job as their mother. So I claimed the religious exemption because my moral conscience tells me to protect my children from harm. My religious creed as a protection that is in the Massachusetts constitution. Adults, Children and grandparents enter the schools on a daily basis in classrooms, volunteering, watching plays, working events, vaccination status unknown. But my child will be kicked out of school for not receiving one dose of the Tdap.
So what is really happening here? Is there any more protection for an immunocompromised child? Why does my child deserves to2180 be punished and discriminated against for me wanting to protect them? Next year, I will have children in 7th and 8th grade. If the religious exemption is removed and they get kicked out of school, I will order a2190 homeschool curriculum. My two children will watch my husband and I go to work and their siblings go to school because they haven't been kicked out yet. And my kids will sit home by themselves and flip through a couple of books. Is this really the education of the state of Massachusetts is going to force on my Children? Why in the world would we be doing this to children after the year? We all just went through. Why in the world would we be doing this to Children when there's no data whatsoever to back this up? Why in the world would2213 you want to do this to Children when the highest vaccination rates in the country and the exemptions actually went down?
Why in the world would you want to do this to Children when suicide rates are up? In a time when we are relying so heavily on science I'm asking you to follow the science and data that shows these bills are unnecessary. In a world where we are working so hard to end discrimination I find it absolutely despicable that I'm even here today fighting a bill that would do just that. Just recently a US Senator held a press conference to give a five brave COVID vaccine injured citizens of voice. Their message was vaccines save lives but injury is real. Believe us help us. And that is what we're asking2247 of you today. Thank you. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
thank you Miss howard. Um Miss Murphy. I think we should hear from you. Um There may be another Murphy but um but if Andrea Murphy so you're Andrea Murphy. Ashley Murphy is on high.2263 I hi can you hear me? I can't I can't your Andrea wait I'm getting an echo. Let me see if I can
and then I'll track.
Can you hear me okay? I can perfectly yeah you're Andrea Murphy. Uh don't have an Ashley Murphy. Um then we'll take Andrea Murphy. And if Ashley Murphy comes on um we will hear from Ashley. So over to you Mississippi.
ANDREA MURPHY - NEWTON ATHLETES UNLIMITED - HB 2411 - SB 1517 - I appreciate that very much. You know what, I actually did have a prepared testimony but listening to everything today I kind of changed. um You know what some of the things that I feel are important. Um I do want to state my opposition to um it's H 2411 and uh S 1517. I wasn't even prepared or written down yet. But I do want to state2314 so I live in Wrentham with2315 my husband and my seven year old son. We're not opposed to science. Our son was born from IVF. He's had every recommended vaccine to date what I am opposed to our politicians taking away our fundamental freedoms and rights. My husband served in the Mass Air National Guard for more than 25 years to protect and serve and he did not do that to watch you take away these rights.
I served on numerous committees and boards2335 targeted to help those with illnesses and disabilities, including 20 years with the Pan-Mass Challenge, 20 years serving on the Newton Athletes Unlimited special Olympics program. I serve on the Crohn's and Colitis Foundation because my friend was on flight 11 that was killed that had Crohn's and Colitis and right now I'm, I had fundraisers tirelessly to help people to help medical conditions, to help people with medical, um, with their medical needs. It is not about that, it is about our fundamental rights and it is about causing discrimination for, if certain Children of certain groups required these religious exemptions.
I heard Vargas state earlier that the religious exemptions are going up. If they're going up because people need them. So obviously that there's a reason for it. I've also heard people state that it prevents vaccinations. That is simply not true. First of all, it's not up to anybody to dictate what my religion does and does not state. Religions were around way before vaccines, some things and with my Christian faith, my personal beliefs are the ingredients in some of these vaccines. And I don't believe that I should be injecting those in my body. But as I stated, my son has every vaccine. What I'm worried about is the future. I'm not worried about today and I don't think we have an issue. I'm worried about why this is being put in place and what's going to happen down the road, particularly with um, the consent of minors.
That is so2421 upsetting to me that it would even be considered that we would not let the parents of minors. I can see if there was age limitations, I can see if there was some things, you know, I do agree. If you're old enough to drive a car, you probably are or you should be old enough to make some informed decisions. But this doesn't state that this, this states that my seven year old could be subjected to2442 things. Another thing that I am against, um, is the fact that there's no reciprocal relationship here. All it is is all we're seeing is the immunocompromised. And you need to put this, there's no reciprocal. What about our protections? What about our freedoms and our rights? So I don't get to lose those because of other people's rights. It's like me saying, I'm afraid to get into a car accident, so no one else can drive. I mean, I don't2474 get to take away your right I put protections for me if I'm afraid to be in a car2477 accident, I wear a seatbelt, I drive safely. I don't tell you what to do. And this is so dangerous. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Thank you Miss Murphy, appreciate your testimony. Okay everybody, I'm going to read out the next list of folks. Um we have lisa Ottaviano, Janice, Hudson, Ashley reed sarah sun, Hannah king, Suzie, gold, kim richards, Bridget kearns, Emerson kearns, finley kearns. Um so we're gonna go back up and see if lisa to Ottaviano is on. This is lisa to Viana. I'm sorry got it wrong please. Well that's okay. I'm thrilled you're calling me before three a.m. Thank you. Uh you are. So it's up to the ah no2528 please
LISA OTTAVIANO - CONCERNED CITIZEN - HB 2411 - HB 2271 - SB 1517 - Thank you. Honorable members of the Joint Committee on Public Health for allowing me to express my opposition to bills H 2411 S 1517 and H 2271 it is unconscionable and discriminatory to remove2542 or make exemptions so difficult to obtain despite Massachusetts having the highest rate of vaccination in the nation. Such that children in Massachusetts will be prevented from receiving an education. If these bills succeed, they would have devastating effects socially, emotionally, academically, and financially on our Children, our families and our society and would disproportionately affect those of lower socioeconomic status. We have witnessed substantial negative effects from Children not being able to attend school in person due to COVID, including a dramatic increase in suicidal ideation and suicides.
It is also incomprehensible, and shocking to me that children could be given the ability to consent to all medical care, including vaccines without parental consent or knowledge, with no respect to age recognition. There's a recent car rental companies don't rent vehicles to people less than 25 years old. It's because their prefrontal cortexes are not yet fully developed. Children should not be allowed to make medical decisions that could result in their death or permanent disability. The Supreme Court described vaccines as unavoidably unsafe in 2011. Consenting vaccine-injured children wouldn't meet the gauge requirement to report their vaccine injuries to the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System or bring their own case before the National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program to receive compensation for their injuries. $4 billion of which has been paid out since 1986.
Parents couldn't do some on their children's behalf because they would not have even been made aware of the vaccination, received or documentation of it. I would like to share that most of my adult life I only sporadically voted. I2625 could not have told you the names of my legislators and did not ever contact them. With the proposal of bills such as H 2411 S 1517 H 2271 I now vote consistently and I'm a single-issue voter. I vote solely for freedom, religious, medical and otherwise. I make up part of a voting block and our numbers are growing steadily now that more people are waking up to government overreach with the events of the last 18 months. Massachusetts was one of the top 10 most2650 moved out of states2651 in 2020, surpassed by states such as California and New York and Connecticut. States a couple steps ahead of Massachusetts in taking away their residents' freedoms.
Meanwhile, 18 states have passed laws protecting the freedom of the residents. Many of these states are receiving the mass exodus of residents from California New York Massachusetts and Connecticut along with their state income tax, property tax, sales tax, and their children's college tuition. I urge the Legislature to protect the rights of their residents, especially the most vulnerable vaccine injured sub populations, not the bottom lines of vaccine manufacturers. Bottom lines that have allowed for heavy lobbying that leads to bills such as these across the nation. Thank you for your time. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Thank you so much, Janice Hudson please. Yes, Can you hear me? Yeah,
JANIS HUDSON - CONCERNED CITIZEN - HB 2411 - SB 1517 - Thank you, madam Chair. I'm here today as a parent and a clinician to oppose H 2411 and S 1517. While both of these bills have different language and intent, they're both discriminatory and unnecessary. Starting with H 2411 the state has sworn to uphold the religious rights of its citizens. Denying education on the basis of religion is discriminatory and coercive at best. Exemption rates have remained largely steady over the last decade and have had had no impact in measles cases, for example, of which there have been a grand total2726 of three and 10 years, none fatal all from international travel. And to correct the record, there2731 is absolutely treatment for measles. And many religious groups take issue with the implication and certain ingredients within these vaccines, including my own religion.
The unadulterated data shows that exemptions have not gone up exponentially, but access and reporting have gone down with the resulting gap population. And yes, Senator Vargas wants to deny education to a small minority group to solve this nonexistent problem. Let me tell you what exactly happens in the trenches. My sister2757 is a resident of the state of Maine, where religious exemptions were recently stripped. The parents struggling with the consequences of that legislation, including my sister, are devastating. She's a single mother of three children, one of whom is vaccine injured. She works two jobs and barely keeps afloat. Homeschooling was never an option for her. She has lost every support she had in place for her Children. This legislation has harmed not just her Children, but our entire extended family, as many of us have taken on the burden of helping her with childcare and paying the growing medical bills for anti-depressants, anti-anxiety medications and ongoing therapy visits for her Children since that time.
One of whom has had ongoing suicidal tendencies since being pulled from school and her beloved soccer team. This is not good politics people. With Rausch's bill, the parent is completely removed from the equation. DPH alone plays parent doctor and pastor all at once. We've already discussed the minor issue and it's not about just minors walking into CVS to get a shot. It's allowing coercion in the pediatrician's office to ensue something I have witnessed myself as a parent. This bill erroneously focuses on targeting families with exemptions rather than understanding and supporting the2830 gap population. Under-vaccinated and unvaccinated people are not the problem here.
And stigmatizing marginalizing and shaming these minority groups is not the way to achieve better data collection and outcomes. Just because a child is not fully vaccinated does not mean they're walking around like a disease vector. In fact, a recent study by Dr. James Lyons-Weiler at IPAK proves the opposite. That Children with fewer or no vaccines are significantly healthier on every single childhood health marker across the board. I will happily reference that in my written testimony. This type of legislation is directly harmful to children and families and2867 it teaches divisiveness and fear. We are fighting the wrong battle and vilifying the wrong2872 people here folks. Medical exemptions are not enough. They're are nearly impossible to procure and being revoked in states like California and physicians are not.
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Thank you so much. We have misread please.
Ashley Reed.
Alright. Here you become present. Very good. Thank you.
ASHLEY REED - CONCERNED CITIZEN - HB 2271 - HB 2411 - SB 1517 - Um Good afternoon. Um my name is Ashley and I am a core vaccine-injured individual and the parent of two healthy unvaccinated children. I am here to speak against H2411, S 1517, And H 2271 as a Christian because they violate the basic human rights to religious freedom and bodily autonomy. The bill sponsors and supporters claim that no religion broadly condemned vaccines ignorantly. The use of cells, cellular debris protein and DNA, human children is found in several vaccines and they violate the very basic commands found in Exodus and Deutronemy which instruct us not to murder. Your most popular vaccine ingredients were derived from no fewer than 107 human souls who were sacrificed for social reasons and then used in past and ongoing vaccine research.
These ingredients obtained from humans are not required to be listed by the FDA. Supporting vaccinations and vaccination developments is an endorsement of the sacrifice of those lives. Passages from Genesis and Jeremiah demonstrate that2963 deceased children using vaccinations were recognized by God as human souls from the point of conception in the same that we recognize the same way that we recognize our children as human from the moment we know that we're pregnant. Several more Old Testament verses illustrate that all child sacrifices condemned with no exception clauses allowing for greater good. Nor are there any community immunity catchphrases found anywhere in the sacred scripture.
1 Corinthians reminds us that we are to regard our bodies as temples of God's Holy Spirit and that we are to honor God, our creator and possessor of our very bodies by not defiling them. The presence of socially sacrificed human cells, debris, neurotoxins, hazardous substances, attenuated viruses, animal cells, foreign DNA proteins from human blood, carcinogens and chemical waste is in strict violation of our religious commandments. Genesis, Leviticus, Deuteronomy, and Acts inform us that blood represents the life force of humans, animal,s and species and that human blood was to be kept pure under all circumstances. Monkey bovine guinea pig3025 and canine blood serum is used in the development of vaccines.
These bills require parents and students to choose between their moral religious conscience and their education, not just my religion, but many. This is segregation and discrimination and the notion of such a concept being acceptable and logical in the year 2021 is important. We maintain the freedom of choice if we want a woman to choose an abortion, but not when a girl does not want the waste from another person's abortion injected into her body. You must oppose these three bills on the grounds of consistency and sound judgment that the individual has the right how to choose and manage their body and their choice of where they3064 educate their minds. No one profits from so called anti-vax stances as if those injured by vaccines and are at risk of having their rights stripped. Thank you.
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Thank you. I see. Representative Lewis,
REP LEWIS - Thank you Chair Comerford. I wanted to actually make a comment at this juncture two comments. Uh, there is a religion in the United3089 States that has uh opposition to vaccines. There's one religion it's not a major religion, the Christian Scientists headquartered in Boston. But I think it's important we've been talking around the definition of major religion or any religion or mainstream religion. I think it's important that we just note that there is one religion, the Christian Scientist, and maybe if their leaders have signed up to testify, we may hear from them later, But it's a religion that has 50,000 followers uh, in the United States. Uh, a religion that's actually been shrinking in membership over the last 20 or 30 years. Uh, not growing as folks have been claiming religious exemptions.
There's, there's one point, I just want to own there, there is one religion, uh, and maybe we'll hear from them later. Uh, they opposed many. Actually, most, if not all, uh, medical interventions, including prescription drugs or visits to the doctor or cancer treatments, including vaccines. Uh, but I think there's one other thing that I want to just make sure is set into the record uh as it relates to the catholic church's uh apparent opposition to some vaccines. And3156 it's been a long time since I was in catholic school, and it's been 11 years since I graduated Seminary. But my understanding is that the catholic church's doctrine around vaccines, uh even vaccines that were developed using uh two of the strains that do date back to this question of aborted tissue.
Uh The catholic church's doctrine states that Catholics are permitted to access those vaccines when there's not an alternative vaccine available. Uh and it was the I think the Vatican's congregation on the doctrine of faith, which recently stated that it is morally acceptable to receive COVID-19 vaccines that have been used from cell lines from aborted fetuses in their research and production process. Due to the situation of the ongoing pandemic all vaccines recognized as clinically safe and effective, can be used in good conscience with a certain knowledge that use of such vaccines does not constitute formal cooperation with the abortion from which the cells used in production of the vaccines derive. Uh we've been talking around Christian Scientists, we've been talking around catholic doctrine, and for me, at least this afternoon, it's important to read into the record at least the, of those two denominations. Thank you. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
3236 Thank3236 you. Representative friends. I'm just going to remind us, um that we need to be able to uh not interrupt. We be need to be able to not gesture to the camera's not hold up signs. Um you maybe you're you're sitting with a lot of feelings, but we have to have an orderly, respectful hearing. We are not I would not allow that for anyone pro or anti um people on these bills. Okay. Um so it's super important that we maintain this um decorum. Thanks for the Thanks for the thumbs up.3273 303. Okay. Um we have a representative who has joined as is the policy of this committee. We are going to take the representative out of turn, Representative Karen's. You are welcome to testify.
REP KERANS - HB 2394 - Uh Commerford, I want to um uh first thank you for um holding this hearing today and for taking me out of turn. I do appreciate it. I will be brief. Um, I am here today in support of House 2394 I believe3309 you heard it earlier. It's legislation to ensure that funeral directors and workers are prioritized as health care workers in the future should we find ourselves in a situation needing uh to have broad vaccination vaccinations rather. As you know, funeral directors and workers were not prioritized um in the pandemic uh with3335 other health care workers. Uh Once I became aware of what I thought was an oversight, I attempted to bring it to the attention of the administration uh to appeal to place these workers who are routinely, they were routinely in COVID units.
They were handling um remains of the deceased, uh and they were not given the chance to be prioritized for vaccination. Um I thought it was an oversight, brought it to the attention of the administration. Nothing doing nothing changed. Um I then drafted a letter and 120 colleagues, including the many of you here today, signed on. Thank you. Um and I'm afraid that the only recourse now to ensure that this doesn't happen again is to put it in statute. Um, in closing, I just do want to thank all of you for your unbelievable work during this pandemic. Um prior to my election in 2020 I was3401 fortunate to be on the email list for um chair Decker's emails3406 that would come every Friday night chock full of useful information, which I greatly appreciated.
And then once I was elected, um thanks to the efforts of Rep Garlick Chairs Garlick and3421 Driscoll, I was able to listen in on the command center calls which was incredibly helpful. I always learned something from Senator Comerford from your questions or Senator Rausch from your questions. I thank you all for the phenomenal work that you did during this pandemic um on behalf of the people of our commonwealth. Oh and there is Chair Decker. So I just want to say hello as well to my friend. I thank you again for your favorable consideration of House 2394. Happy to take any questions. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Thank you so much. Representative. Um And I see the chair as well and also she's been she's been with us. We're just taking turns going back and forth in um in order madame Chair did you wanna did you want to make3470 a statement or comment? No except sally. Those were every night. Not just every friday. We just switched to every friday. You really? Lordy. Lordy. Okay wow. I don't think I was able to catch them every single night but they were always informative. So kudos great to see you. Um Chair decors commitment is really unparalleled. Okay I'm going to call the next person Sarah son. Sarah are you on? I am thank you so much. Very good.
SARAH SON - CONCERNED CITIZEN - HB 2411 - HB 2271 - SB 1517 - I'm Sarah Son, I'm a resident of Wayland and a mother of a high schooler and a medical school student. Thank you for the opportunity to speak to you today. I'm speaking to you because I greatly oppose H 2411 S 1517 and H 2271. The bible tells me that my body is my temple. Let me say that again. My body is my temple and again my body is my temple. What does that mean? That means that I must keep my body as I see fit so that I may house the spirit which belongs to God. It is my duty to keep my body as I see fit. No one else can tell me what is best for me as this is between me and God. My religious beliefs and how I see fit to observe them regarding my medical decisions should not be called a loophole. It is my right to practice my religion as I see fit.
Because my body is my temple I get to decide what gets injected into my body and what medical interventions I choose. Again this decision is between me and God. The state has the responsibility of educating my child regardless of our family's religious beliefs. And denying them education because of these beliefs is unconstitutional. These3595 bills will deny me the right to decide what is best for my body. No one is the authority of my body. God is. I3605 have the constitutionally protected right to practice my religion without restrictions.
My sincerely held religious beliefs are sacred to me, and the First Amendment says, I can practice them as I see fit, not how the state sees fit, or how doctors and scientists see fit. How I see fit, and I see fit, that I must not desecrate the holiest of temples my body. These bills are unlawful, as they restrict my most fundamental right to freely practice my religion. I implore the DPH that these bills be rejected because they violate my constitutional rights and the rights of other citizens of the commonwealth. Thank you so much. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Thank you. I want to thank my colleague Senator Commerford for her her taking on sharing duties as we alternate here. Um At this time I will recognize3665 um Hannah Kings, then it will be Suzie Gold and then kim Richards. And I will remind you that if you are not a member of the committee, you don't get to engage with the committee. Um and we are trying to make sure that everybody who wants3679 to speak and speak and as if we were in person, there are no signs allowed. Um and it is distracting and disrespectful to those who are trying to listen to. So thank you at this time, I want to welcome Hannah King. I am here.
Welcome. You have three minutes. Thank you.
HANNAH KING - CONCERNED CITIZEN - HB 2271 - HB 2411 - SB 1517 - Um Thank you, madam chair and committee members. I'm here today to state my opposition to S 1517 H 2271 and H 2411. Plain and simply vaccinations go against my beliefs to not inject myself or my future Children with anything that could potentially harm them with the liability free pharmaceutical product. Nobody has the right to tell me that my belief is not recognized or valid as it pertains to vaccinations. This goes against our country's First Amendment. Public education is a constitutional right and should never come with the condition that children need to inject themselves with anything in order to attend. Both of these bills infringe on those rights by taking the religious exemption away completely, and or making it even more difficult to receive a medical exemption by taking the decision out of the physician's hands and into the Department of Public Health with a standardized form.
What else would you call that other than forced by coercion? What else would you call that other than infringing on a child's constitutional right to education? Those children whose parents do not want to inject them and inviting discrimination onto them. My girlfriend and I are willing to do anything for our future children to make sure that they are not forced to get any vaccines to attend school. I had all my vaccinations growing up, but I will not play Russian roulette with3774 my children now that I am well informed by non funded Real Science. The science that these legislators supporting this bill refused to acknowledge. I will not just pack up and leave without a fight. My girlfriend and I are 27 years old. Our generation is the future of the state and we have time to fight and make sure that these bills like these never passed.
There is nothing more important to me to fight for other than the freedom and rights for myself and my family. Nobody gets to decide what's best for my child's health except for myself and my spouse. The Department of Public Health is not the end all be all for what is best for my child's health. They are there to make recommendations only. As legislators, you are responsible for protecting my rights. You are not responsible for my health or my child's health. I am tired of having to explain why I don't want a medical intervention for myself or my family. I have spent dozens of hours doing the research and asking the questions that I have been told not to ask. I'm tired of defending a personal health decision and being told it is misinformation to convince me that I should give my children a medical procedure.
My girlfriend and I can legally marry in the3839 state. But we don't have the freedom to choose what happens to our child in order to attend school. We don't have the freedom to our beliefs that prevent us from injecting ourselves and our future children with vaccines if these bills should pass, that is not freedom to us. At the end of the day, it is3854 very simple to me. I do not want to inject my Children with chemicals. End of story. If the counter-argument is that this is for the greater good, then this state is going down a horrifying path that3864 I will not follow. The solution for preventing diseases is not to take away a parent's3869 right to decide what is best for their child's health. The solution is not forcing a medical procedure on to children in order to attend3875 school, a medical procedure that lists death as an adverse reaction. I will fight for my future Children and all the Children and families that are,
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thank you. Um, if you have more to3890 share, please do feel free to submit your comments in writing to the committee. At this time, I would ask Suzie Gold and then kim Richards.
SUSAN GOLD - CONCERNED CITIZEN - HB 2271 - HB 2411 - SB 1517 - Hi, my name is Susan Gold. Thank you for allowing me to testify. I'm opposed to H 2271 H 2411 and S 1517. I'm a Jewish educator and author. I received my education at Grad, College, Temple University Saint Joseph's, and Howard County Colleges. I'm a, Gassner Award recipient. I've authored four Jewish education books. My experience includes both teaching and religious school principal positions. I've also authored a book for the B'ni B'rith Anti-Defamation League to combat discrimination. Judaism teaches humanity, it continues Learning from ancient laws by adapting them to present day.
The story of Jacob and his 12 sons is an example. Jealousy allowed 10 of3942 his sons to sell their youngest brother into slavery and guilt caused them to save him from a death pit. Later when Jacob was dying, he blessed his children according to their strengths and acknowledging their3954 weaknesses. We learned that Judaism does not permit us to make a decision for others. It causes our downfall. Simeon and Levi were men believing in violence. Jacob does not disown his sons but suffers great insult and emotional pain. We learn physical violence enacted on anyone is not a Jewish precept. Curse be on their anger and their fury so cruel. Requiring a vaccine and withholding an education is against Jewish law.
Judah, a strong soft man with great physical strength is compared to a lion's cab. His blessing is full of praise. You will receive the obedience of nations. We strive to emulate Judah and his eyes that are open to those around him, creating peace. Judah achieves consensus among the tribes without violence. Never losing each person's individual value. We are required to act as Judah teaches, be kind, care for others, look for contentment, but never require our beliefs to be accepted and acted upon. Since Judah was compared to a lion's cub and Laid as a lioness we must adapt these beliefs. Obviously, no one can force us to ingest medicine. 3000 years later, as Jews, the intensity we celebrate freedom and choice has remained the epitome of concern.
I have family that were in concentration camps, most were killed. A few survived. They gave their lives to religious freedom and we need to continue to honor them by never withholding the freedom for anyone to practice their religious beliefs. Jacob's son Dan was blessed with being just all the brothers and the children including generations that4059 followed, were obligated to follow the laws. It was God's demand to respect and accommodate others, including medical needs. My work with the Anti-defamation League of B'ni B'rith is critical to eradicate discrimination. These bills do everything to encourage discrimination. Thank you. And I'm available for discussion. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Yeah, thank you. At this time, I would invite kim Richards, followed by Bridget kearns.
Thank you for the to the chairs and committee members for allowing me this opportunity to touch this. Sorry, this kim It is kim. Great welcome.
KIM RICHARDS - CONCERNED CITIZEN - HB 2271 - HB 2411 - SB 1517 - Thank you so much again. Thank you for the opportunity. My name is Kim Richards, I oppose H 2271 H 2411, and S 1517. After my son's most recent vaccination he developed two ticks first with his eyes blinking constantly. He'd tightened his eyes and released over and over again. Then came the tongue thrusts. He'd lash his tongue over his teeth what seemed like a million times a day. He did it so often his tongue bled and developed into what we thought would be permanent painful grooves across his tongue. He complained about the pain. Certain foods exacerbated the pain. He was only five years old and he couldn't fully articulate his frustration and his discomfort. We visited many doctors.
We went to Mass Eye and Ear and Children's Hospital one group of doctors for the eyes and another for the tongue. I had to take time off from work to take him to these appointments. The doctors didn't know how to stop it. His pediatrician had no course of action for us. We prayed and hoped it would not turn into4166 full excuse me We prayed it would not turn into a full on Tourettes. There is a Jewish proverb. A parent understands what a child does not say. Therefore, I am required as a Jew to hear my child and his needs and protect him. I am responsible for his health. My son is a very happy, social, talented and fun child who enjoys school. He loves his community, and if this4191 law passes, he will not be able to attend school any longer due to his medical history. This is discrimination.
My son and the Children across the state deserve an education. He deserves to socialize with his peers. He deserves the additional support he receives. He is not a threat to others. We have seen what remote schooling has done to the Children over COVID. My son and Children like him would be no different if they were denied an education, he will falter. He will no longer thrive. He will be disadvantaged. Please do not vote for these discriminatory bills. Abraham was ordered by God to sacrifice his4229 son Isaac. He never did because God stopped his hand. Please do not sacrifice my child. Thank you. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Thank you. At this time I welcome Bridget kearns, followed by Emerson Kearns and then Finley kearns.
Bridget kearns with us.
So Bridget Emerson and Finley. Oh Bridget. Hi, I see you. You.
There you go. Welcome. Okay, thank you.
BRIDGET KEARNS - CONCERNED CITIZEN - HB 2411 - HB 2271 - SB 1517 - Good afternoon. I am here to oppose H 2411 S 1517 and H 2271. My name is Bridget Kearns and I am the mother of two beautiful and healthy children Emerson and Finley. I have spent the last 20 years working in healthcare as an occupational therapist. The first time I heard of a vaccine reaction was during my first clinical in 1999 and it was for a man with Guillain-Barre syndrome to the flu shot. And to be honest with you, I didn't think much of it at that time. But my third clinical for pediatrics the story repeated itself. This time by mothers of Children with neurological damage after their shots. And then again as I began my first job in an outpatient clinic and continues to this day in my current role in home health.
Seizure disorder, neurological dysfunction, encephalopathy, autism, kidney failure, Guillain-Barre infant to elderly and every age in between. This spring I filed four Barres reports, two embolic strokes within days of4327 patients' COVID shots. I started researching early and it was in understanding the science that I understood why and how it conflicted with my faith. I struggled with what to do because in my head I understood there were great risks of harm, objectionable ingredients such as aborted fetal cells, toxic chemicals and corporate greed that drives the industry. In my heart I trusted God and in his infinite wisdom to design the human body and give us everything we need from this earth. And when I had children, I developed a feeling in my gut an instinct that said, don't do it.
The societal pressure is intense as is the pressure of the medical community. And I felt very alone and I made a difficult decision to delay and spread out the kids' shots. But it never felt right in my heart and I never stopped learning and my faith in God kept growing.4377 I had a moment in which God came to me and I realized that I was overriding everything I understood in my head, my heart, and my gut to follow what society expected me to do. And it was at that moment that I put my face back where it belonged all along with God. And it was at that moment that I honored what my morally formed conscience was guiding me to do all along.
In the words of Father Copenhagen in response to I've adjusted my speech to this recent, um speaking many Catholics and conscientious people upon further moral analysis see a clear, immediate forced cooperation in the intrinsic evil of theft, desecration, experimentation, and trafficking of human remains obtained through violence to produce the product. Regardless of the documents and policy statements to date some of the individual dioceses and bishops' conferences this remains a magisterially unsettled question, which means that a catholic of well informed conscience who judges compliance with a vaccination morally impossible, is bound by catholic teaching to refuse the procedure. Cooperation and trafficking of aborted fetal remains is one of the number one,
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company.
Thank you at this time, I welcome Emerson Karen's
Welcome.
EMERSON KEARNS - CONCERNED CITIZEN - HB 2271 - HB 2411 - SB 1517 - Good morning. I am here to oppose bills. S 1517, H 2271, and H 2411. My name is Emerson. I am a student. I just completed 9th grade, enrolled in 10th-grade classes at Wareham High School. I got straight A's, was on higher honor roll, and well, I miss the opportunity to be part of clubs. Right now I should be enjoying my first summer job not fighting for my right to an education. I'm an4509 athlete. I am a competitive dancer and a softball player. I've been dancing for 13 years and missed the stage this past year. I played on the varsity softball team this year4521 in addition to my reck and club teams. I am a Christian. I have a right to my sincere religious beliefs and practicing my faith in God. I am a female. I have the right to say no, including to vaccinations.
I am a future voter. I am learning to use my voice in our democracy. And in three short years my vote will count. I am an American. I have constitutionally protected rights to practice my faith. I have the right to an education. I am a daughter, a sister, a friend. I am an individual. I am healthy. I am brave I want to go to school. If these bills pass I will no longer have access to the public education where I thrive as a student. If these bills pass, I will be forced to take the same shot that injured my grandfather. If these bills pass I won't be able to play high school softball or go to homecoming or run for student council. If these bills pass, I will lose out on opportunities to earn academic and athletic scholarships to go to college. If these bills pass I won't be able to go to college at all in Massachusetts.
If these bills pass I will be a victim of bullying by adults in the Massachusetts government. I will be a4607 pawn of the political agenda. I will be stripped of my constitutional rights. I will be4612 the target of religious persecution. I will be coerced to accept something I don't want in my body or lose the ability to be in a classroom. I am not one size fits all. I am not a threat. I am not collateral damage. My health is not for sale. I have the right to an education. I am worthy. My name is Emerson Kearns. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Thank you. At this time. I welcome Finley kearns
Lord.
And then you want to take the mute button off my friend. We'll start your time when you're off mute. Welcome. We're all still trying to get the hang of it.
FINLEY KEARNS - CONCERNED CITIZEN - HB 2271 - HB 2411 - SB 1517 - My name is Finley. I'm 12 years old and just finished 6th grade with straight A's. In 5th grade, my social studies teacher taught me that there were 27 reasons why colonists left Great Britain. One of them was for religious freedom. They were being forced to have one religion and one religion only. Many people fought for freedom to create a democratic society In both Massachusetts and US constitution, the right to practice your religion is a protected right that every citizen has. We believe that God created us perfect the way we are. We4704 can build up our own immune systems by eating healthy foods with lots of vitamins and minerals, getting plenty of sleep, participating in physical4711 activity and washing our hands.
We do not think that we should be forced to have toxic chemicals injected into our bodies in order to go to school. This is going against all the documents that say we should have the right to practice our faith. Dr. Martin Luther King JR once said, I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed. We hold these truths to be self evident that all men are created equal. He fought so that all children could go to school together without segregation or discrimination. Well, I have a dream too. I have always wanted to go to college at MIT and work at NASA. If these bills, if this bill passes, my4751 parents won't be able to teach me everything I need to know to get into MIT. Even worse I won't be able to go if I don't accept the vaccines.
I love school so much. So much4761 so that I hate missing my classes. I love math, social studies, ELA, and science. I love to read and have many friends and play video games. I also love to play baseball and I'm a competitive swimmer. This last year of school was awful. I missed being in school, my friends, and my teachers. I did not learn as much at home. And that is why I'm here today to fight for my right to stay in school. Though I am not discriminated against because of my faith4789 are segregated because I won't take the vaccines. There's something I don't understand if someone is sitting next to me and they have a vaccine and I don't why should they be afraid of me? Does that mean they are worried their vaccine4803 won't work? How can I give them something that I don't even have? I should not be feared. I am not a threat. My life is equally valuable.
SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Thank you. Finley.
At this time I would ask Ashley Stafford and then carry Montgomery and then4827 Joanna cassis, cassis. Lewinsky. Sorry, Fiba, You can correct me when it's your turn, Ashley.
Ashley Stafford
long. Okay, I'm going to ask for Carrie, Montgomery. Mm. Hi.
Yes. Hi, who's speaking, please? This is Carrie. Montgomery. Carrie welcome.
CARRIE MONTGOMERY - CONCERNED CITIZEN - HB 2411 - HB 2271 - SB 1517 - Thank you. So, I am here to voice my strong opposition to H 2411, S. 1517 and H 2271. I held my 15 month old in my arms as she had a seizure hours after receiving three shots for the CDC recommended schedule other injections she suffered encephalitis and has ticks. Her body cannot tolerate these pharmaceutical products the same as others. We are still dealing with the consequences today and now my own state senator has proposed legislation that will see her either further injured or lose her right to an education. These bills would strip Massachusetts, residents of our constitutionally protected creator given rights. What they propose is unconstitutional, unethical, illegal and discriminatory.
There are three general statements about vaccinations in the US that cannot be disputed, which are one like prescription drugs, vaccines are pharmaceutical products that carry a risk of injury, death and failure. Two there are genetic, biological and environmental, high-risk factors that make some individuals more susceptible to vaccine reactions but doctors cannot predict who will be harmed. And three, the US Congress and Supreme Court have declared government license and mandated vaccines to be quote unavoidably unsafe end quote and more than $3 billion in federal vaccine injury compensation has been awarded under the National Childhood Vaccine Injury Act of 1986. It is our human right to exercise freedom of thought, conscience and religious belief for ourselves and for our minor children for whom we are legally responsible without being discriminated against and punished with denial of education and other societal sanctions that violate our civil rights.
A simple no should suffice4950 for refusing any medical procedure including vaccinations. S 1517 would violate that constitutional right, leaving4956 it up to the DPH to approve or deny our religious exemption. H 2411 tries to take away our constitutional rights entirely to freely express our religious beliefs. These bills4966 are a threat to our children proposing minors can consent to vaccinations even without parental knowledge or consent. Children can't be given Tylenol or an EpiPen without parents' signatures. It is not okay for them to be given a vaccine without parental consent. And no one believes minors will be given the choice that has already been denied to their parents. Minors are taught to do what they're told that isn't consent, It is medical assault.
S 1517 would force families of faith to sign a document they do not agree with that may put them at legal risk. Further encourages fear hate and discrimination4995 by labeling schools and programs with an elevated risk category. We can all see how effective programs losing revenue and their reputation would expel or discriminate children. Just think of it we'd never allow similar legislation that proposed publicizing and discriminating based on Children's HIV or Hepatitis status. The U.S Constitution states Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion or prohibiting the free exercise with of it does not stipulate what the exercising of religion looks like or that it must align with a major religion. Our exercising of5025 religion is not up for governance by the state Full stop. I am here as a witness to say. They are not one size fits all we need real solutions by thoughtful leaders. Thank you. Please oppose these bills. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Thank you. At this time I would ask again if Ashley Stafford is here.
Okay, we're gonna move on Joanna because Castle Lynskey.
JOANNA KISELINSKI - CONCERNED CITIZEN - HB 2411 - HB 2271 - SB 1517 - Yes. Good afternoon. This is Joanna Kiselinski. Um, thank you to all who testified. I am opposed to bills H 2411 S 1517 and H 2271. Um, the statement that has been dropped multiple times today5064 that no recognized or organized religion is against vaccines5067 is an insulting statement to all minorities suggesting that our values are less important than those of others. Um, also, it's impossible to document people's interpretation of their faith. I am a catholic and although, um, some bishops and priests support vaccines, some don't. Um, and I don't believe it's any politician's role to tell me how to interpret my church's teachings. Um, the point of religious exemptions is to protect the freedom of religion of all citizens and minorities and it's unfair to5097 get rid of it because of the assumption that non-religious people are taking advantage of this right.
With regard to H 2411, removing the religious exemption for all institutions would put citizens at risk for discrimination um, in receiving education and medical care and would attempt at taking away our rights and controlling us and our personal religious and medical decisions.5117 Only eight out of 50 states have taken away this right. Let's not be one of those few controlling states. Um, some mandated vaccines are prepared using cell lines direct and aborted human fetuses and according to my faith, abortion and using cell lines from them is unethical and against my religion and my interpretation of my religion. Many conservative Christians feel they would be indirectly supporting the abortion industry and acting against their religious beliefs.
Um The US constitution recognizes our right to object to consuming something, including vaccines because it violates our faith. Additionally, many religious citizens would be discriminated against and lose access to public school daycares and so on, despite us paying taxes and paying for public education. Furthermore, some mandated vaccines with their numerous additives and mechanisms for altering our bodies are the equivalent of prohibited unclean food that causes harm to our conscience. Vaccines to me, are analogous to what non-kosher food is to orthodox Jews, and no one requires Jews or anyone in the US to consume a substance contrary to their faith.
With regards to S 1517 and H5178 2271, if doctors have to be tracked by the state for their patient's religious exemptions, doctors inevitably made pressure patients even more into getting vaccines against their religious beliefs, or they may refuse care and discriminate against citizens because of their beliefs. Furthermore, minors should not be allowed to consent5194 to preventative care without parental knowledge,5197 because if there were any side effects, from vaccines, we would not even know and we know how and if we need to help our children. The bill is an attempt at manipulating minors into agreeing to vaccines and other preventative care, such as a birth control that may be against one's religion and5213 morals and may cause short or long-term physical moral or emotional side effects.
This again would be taking control away from parents and giving control to the state. Uh, like one representative said, we are not going from 0 to 60 but slowly our rights and freedoms are being taken away by bills like this one. In Meyer versus Nebraska. The court explained that the due5233 process clause of the 14th Amendment protects the right to marry, establish a home and bring up children. Thus we the parents should make medical decisions and religious decisions for our children and not the state of Massachusetts or the government. Thank you. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
This time I would ask Kerry marmol and then Donald Mcpherson
is Carrie here, marmol.
Okay, gonna go on to Donald Mcpherson,
aimee Mcpherson, Can you hear me? Is this Donald? This is Donald. Hi Donald. Welcome. You have three minutes. We can hear you.
DONALD MCPHERSON - CONCERNED CITIZEN - HB 2271 - HB 2411 - SB 1517 - Well, um, I just think it has gotten way out of hand. At what point do we say no and stop? Um, it's not the government's right to do these things and make these choices for families. It's not my responsibility to make sure someone who's compromised our existing conditions to uh take care of you. It's up to you. You take your own precautions and we'll take ours and the government has no right to step foot in here. At one point are we going to say no and stopped this? It's just kind of gotten insane.
I don't wanna be redundant because a lot of people brought up a lot of great points and but we are a small minority but we still count. And just because we don't make up the majority of a certain population doesn't mean that we should be forced to do things that we don't want to do regardless of anything else. And that's just the bottom line. A small minority, but it's growing because we have rights and you can't be allowed to just take them away. A lot of people, I understand a lot of people are coming from a good place and they we all want to be safe and I understand that, but taking away rights is not where we should start. Thanks. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Thank you. At this time, I would ask aimee Mcpherson.5361
AMY MCPHERSON - CONCERNED CITIZEN - HB 2411 - HB 2271 - SB 1517 - Hi, thank you. Um, so today, I'm speaking in opposition of bills, H 2411 H 2271, and S 1517. And I'm asking you to please vote no on these bills. Um, Massachusetts is currently the highest vaccinated state and that's with 1% of kindergarten students obtaining a religious exemption. 1%. There is absolutely no need to be adding a bill or any bill to removing individuals' freedom to choose what goes into my family's body. Either of these bills is stripping body anatomy, removing basic freedom and creating an environment of the inequality. By voting yes to these bills it's stripping my children's right to access to public education. Vaccines are not a one size fits all.
The vaccine companies currently are making over $60 billion a year selling mandatory vaccines with zero liability. The Supreme Court even labeled them unavoidably unsafe which is a major reason why we should have a choice. Currently, our children are asked to take 69 doses of vaccines and there has never been a safety study5447 done to this day to test the combination of vaccines done at one time. There are carcinogenic effects injection of these, a wide variety of chemicals versus5461 ingestion and an endless list of other safety studies that have never been done. When I make my informed decision for my family I am following the science. I'm understanding the chemicals because I research everything. And because I'm not a doctor, it doesn't mean that I am not thoroughly reading every medical journal out there.
I am trying my best for my children and I have two very smart boys and I do not want them to lose rights to public education or be discriminated against. I do not believe in any way it's the5504 DPH's responsibility to understand5505 what is best for my child. Being their mother I have made a medical informed decision and I do not believe the state has the ability to make any decision for me. And there's no questions asked. Thank you so much for your time and the opportunity to speak. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Thank you. Um, I just, I'm trying. Um, hopefully people are noticing. We're not spending a lot of time trying to debate or even correct some5537 things that might not be factually correct in terms of the law as it's written. Um, but I do believe that we do not require Children to take 69 vaccines and I just think that's important to put out there. Um, at this time, whatever that if5550 you please do not, this is not a back and forth. That is a mute. Um, In a hearing5557 that were taking place in the State House, just like a virtual hearing. The chair can respond. The chair can call on members of the committee. Um, and and that's where we're5567 at. I want to appreciate everyone's time and we are trying to get through the next 300 speakers so everybody5573 can see that they have their say. If you have more to say, please feel free to submit it to5578 writing. If you have had a chance to testify before the committee, we are asking you to sign off 15 platform and I believe somebody is not on you. So I'm gonna ask him to put it on you. Um, at this time I want to welcome5593 um Colleen ans um, Jessica Rosin, and then after Jessica rods and Jessica govern, Is this Colleen? Yes, I'm here. Colleen. Welcome.
COLEEN ANEZ - CONCERNED CITIZEN - HB 2411 - SB 1517 - Thank you. Thank you for the opportunity to speak today. My name is Colleen Anez and I am both a public school teacher and the mom of5616 two public school Children in Massachusetts. I am writing to ask you to oppose H 2411 and S 1517. Proponents of these bills will tell you that supposedly children who use religious exemptions are a5631 health danger to other children but I'm here to tell you that these bills are a danger to our children, children like mine. Removing and restricting medical and religious exemptions, puts the health of a small minority group of children at risk. My son, a special needs student qualifies for a medical exemption. It was a decision made between his doctor and his parents based on the knowledge of his individual circumstances. He had a vaccine injury that is considered rare.
Telling a parent that a condition that happens to their child is rare does not make it go away. It is like adding insult to injury. No one will be by your side when your5680 child suffers a rare injury. The medical bills, the doctor's appointments, the pain. It will be yours alone to endure. No Department of Public Health, no legislator will be by your side to help your child. No one will be5695 paying for those medical bills. What you think protects some immunocompromised children harms other children. It harms another minority group. Despite what some people say the science is not settled on vaccines being completely safe. In fact, if they were completely safe without any kind of injury, why would we need the vaccine injury court? Why would we need the government to pay for the liability so that the pharmaceutical companies don't have to?
Vaccine injury is based on science as well. It's well documented and it's not paid for by the pharma companies. S 1517 would make medical exemptions so difficult to get unless you almost die of anaphylaxis. This is because the CDC has narrowed over the years the exemptions or the injuries that you can claim. So currently my son's medical injury would not be considered, um, an approved injury. So he would not under the bill as it's going to change, he would not qualify for a medical exemption. However, based on the expertise of his doctor in conjunction with his parents, he does qualify for a medical exemption. So despite what some5775 people have said, it will make it more difficult to get a medical exemption. I would implore you to really research the numerous ways that a person can be injured by the many different vaccines5786 on the schedule. Proponents of removing religious exemptions will tell you that none of the major religions are in opposition to vaccination. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Thank you. Um, at this time I'm going to call on Jessica rods in and just remind everyone that you have three minutes and at three minutes you will be automatically muted. But you're welcome to send written testimony to the committee which is read by committee members of chairs and our staff. Um, Jessica are you here? Yes. Can you hear me? We can welcome.
JESICCA RHODES - CONCERNED CITIZEN - SB 1517 - HB 2411 - HB 2711 - Thank you. I'm here to oppose S 1517, H 2271 and H 2411. These bills discriminate against my family's religious beliefs and medical disabilities. The proposed changes to the medical5844 exemptions and attempting to track doctors included in these bills are both extremely dangerous. Myself and my son both experienced permanent lifelong vaccine reactions that are recognized in the FDA contra indications but not by the CDC as this bill would change. My son's disability was listed right on the vaccine package insert. It affects our lives every single day and night and causes thousands of dollars every year in medical care. After the original doctor who diagnosed him filed his Barres report and gave us our medical exemption. She moved out of state. We were thrown out of the pediatric practice entirely.
We've been asked to leave another practice even though they agreed to a medical exemption and gave us one for two full years. This bill would open us up to even more discrimination, not just in my children's education but in their right to healthcare. Um, the bill would target doctors who will then be less willing to see us. That's already happened twice without the help of this bill. Politicians have no5915 place in medical decision-making. That's a quote from the author of this bill. I cannot believe I'm even here fighting these bills by an author who claims to champion women's health and defends others' right to choose, but not us the parents, even though the law recognizes our parental rights. Why is my family's access to legitimate FDA admitted medical exemptions being threatened?
Many doctors are not trained in adverse events. Why are injured families like mine not protected against known FDA adverse events? Why don't my Children count in this conversation? We're practicing Catholics and while I have always thought a life-altering diagnosis could make me question God, it's done the opposite. My relationship with God is between me and him, not our doctor, not our priest, not the Pope. Me and God. This bill would require DPH to sign off on my religious beliefs. I need5976 approval for my religious beliefs, from my government? I'm hoping the committee will uphold their oath to protect mine and my children's constitutional rights, including freedom of religion, as well as my Children's right to their education. These bills make our Children targets and set precedent for acceptable segregation. My Children deserve the public education we pay for they deserve not to worry every year if their education will be ripped away or if we6007 will have to move away from their family and friends for access to education. I ask that you please oppose these bills. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Thank you. At this time I would welcome Jessica McGovern. Are you here, Jessica McGovern?
Can you hear me? I can welcome.
JESSICA MCGOVERN - CONCERNED CITIZEN - HB 2411 - HB 2271 - SB 1517 - Hi, my name is Jessica McGovern. I'm on a speakerphone. I oppose 2411, 2271 and 1517. MRC-5 and WI-38 are aborted fetal cells documented as ingredients in four vaccines. Dr. Stanley Plotkin, creator of four vaccines author of the bible known as the Plotkin's Vaccine discusses in his nine hour deposition, chopping up normal, fully developed fetal body parts such as heart,6059 spleen, lung, kidney, pituitary gland, and tongue in one vaccine research project. And I did send you the documents on that. This is evil. This is not my God. I will not have dead fetal parts injected into my body or my children's and my grandchildren's bodies. And I just did a quick look up on the Massachusetts vaccine schedule for 10 illnesses there's 55 shots.
My personal family issue with rejecting vaccines ended in a courtroom with Judge Randy Kaplan of Essex county referring to mandating vaccines as stated in the following, she said, vaccinations are a controversial issue. I am not trying this case. I would not do anything. Parents need to research the pros and cons. I assure you that the court6109 is not going to do we are not going to make the determination of whether a child should be vaccinated. To me I sort of I used to do that years ago and then I realized that it is not my role to make that determination. We who have experienced adverse side effects and injuries as precaution in the vaccine inserts are not playing the vaccine roulette game anymore. We are now play natural immunity and science has grown to learn more about the immune system.
We have also healing many cases of autism and brain injury and using detox methods to remove the heavy metals from vaccines such as thimerosal and aluminum. I personally know three mothers who have great success with their autistic sons. Well-known Dr. Rashid Buttar, MD, toxicologist and Dr. Dan Pappas both healed their autistic sons with detox methods. Both doctors have written books on this topic yet media State House and most doctors are not discussing this. I find this incredibly disturbing censorship appealing children is neglectful at best.
I suggest legislatures apply solutions such as educating all parents of full informed consent history of illnesses, prevention, and proven natural methods of healing vitamin A. For measles, vitamin C for proptosis. These childhood illnesses are nothing to be afraid of. Fear sells according to CDC literature promoting vaccines. I do not buy into that fear.6185 We need a debate with new advances used in healing. Um is that over okay? All vaccine makers are convicted felons and they've been fined billions for fraud with vaccines. They were going to go out of business in 1987 due to so many injuries and deaths, but Congress gave them immunity in 1987. Thank you. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Mhm. I'm gonna ask people to really speak to the bill at hand. Um and6209 we are6210 really trying to liberally apply allowing people to get their three minutes and but it needs to be to6216 the bill at hand. If we were in person, we would be actually probably more accountable around calling out uh testimony as it relates to the bill at hand. So I want at this time welcome Brittany nickerson. And then after Brittany I will call on Marine Brown Brittany, are you here?
Okay? I'm gonna ask Marron Brown.
Yeah, jennifer Stevenson,
Shannon Loken, Sola.
Hi, this is jennifer Stevenson. Welcome, jennifer.
JENNIFER STEVENSON - CONCERNED CITIZEN - HB 2411 - HB 2271 - SB 1517 - Hi, I'm here today in opposition to bills S 1517 and H 2271 and H 2411. As a parent and a special education teacher I strongly believe that everyone has a free and equal right to public education, no matter his race, his or her race, sexual orientation, religion, underlying medical dysfunction, or disability. My daughter is part of the vulnerable subpopulation. She was born healthy in 2008 yet has a genetic trait that makes her susceptible to malignant hypothermia. This is a life-threatening reaction to inhalation anesthetics. Gene mutations have been identified as indicators from malignant hypothermia. However, not all genes that potentially trigger MH have been identified or studied.
Mutation in genes caused her channels to6321 open more easily and close more slowly in response to certain drugs. The genetic causes of several6328 other types of malignant hypothermia are still under study. Research now indicates that increased body temperature could be a trigger for an awake MH event. There is mounting evidence that some affected individuals will also develop MH with exercise and our exposure to hot environments. As a parent of a malignant hypothermia susceptible child, this terrifies me. A well known vaccine reaction is a fever. When the vaccine is given, the fever that often arises is not the same as a naturally occurring fever. Therefore, my child has an increased risk of awake MH event from a vaccine induced fever.
As per past state law, I don't need to define my religion. I have a morally formed conscience and I'm opposed to the use of fetal DNA in vaccines. According to Dr. Theresa Deisher injecting children with human fetal DNA contaminants bears the risk of causing insertions neurogenesis. My daughter already has a genetic mutation, adding fetal DNA would exacerbate her medical condition. Also, fetal cell lines are not immortal. There's a finite number of times they can be6397 replicated before they cease to be viable. There is a new fetal cell line that was recently developed in China. It is the Walvax-2 and 9 abortions were involved. The abortions were performed via the water bag movements. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
And can you please keep your testimony relevant to the actual bill at hand? Um Madam Chair. This speaks to my religious objection to
vaccines and I have that right to discuss that. AM I going to be given extra time since you interrupted? Leave an extra 30 seconds? Go on. Thank you.
STEVENSON - The abortions were performed6432 via the water bag methods so the babies could be delivered fully intact before being dissected and organs harvested while they were still alive. This is important because live viruses cannot be cultured on dead tissue. I am in complete opposition to the continued use6448 of fetal DNA and vaccines. Even there is no legitimate reason to take away someone's strongly held religious beliefs, body autonomy or health choice. Massachusetts has the highest vaccination rates and the lowest exemption rates in the country. Exemption rates went down last year. These bills are unnecessary. Even with malignant hypothermia, Gillian does not qualify for a medical exemption. She would have to have a life-threatening reaction to each vaccine. And that is not okay. As a parent, it's my duty to protect my daughter. Not.
I SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
want to make sure my team had added the 30 seconds. If you didn't please start the extra 30 seconds now.
All right, I'm gonna assume my team added the 30 seconds. Which is why no one is communicating at this time. May I continue? Miss Stevenson? Hold on, please. I thank you for your patience.
Go ahead. Miss Stevens have an extra 30 seconds. It's Miss Stevenson. Thank you. I apologize. Miss Stevenson. Go ahead.
STEVENSON - As a parent, it is my duty to protect my daughter not repeatedly place her in harm's way. If religious exemptions are removed, Gillian will no longer be allowed to attend public or private school. She is currently thriving in the traditional school model. She is a national Junior honor society student. During the ongoing COVID-19 crisis, we continue to see the detrimental effects of the loss of in person education. These bills are destructive to families like6566 mine. And I find it very offensive that I was interrupted during my testimony. Thank you. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
At this time I would ask Shannon lung cancer, Lola. And if I said your name incorrectly, I apologize.
Can you hear me? Is that is that you Shannon? Yes, that's me. Yeah, welcome.
SHANNON ??? - CONCERNED CITIZEN - HB 2411 - HB 2271 - SB 1517 - Thank you. I'm gonna just keep it very brief. Um, I am in opposition for removing religion. Excuse me for religious exemption. I think it is discriminatory on multiple fronts and I believe6607 that we have the right to choose what to put into our bodies and the government cannot decide that for us and our kids should not be punished and not be able to have the right to public education. Because of that, there are other forms. I'm not opposed to immunization, but I am opposed to saying that everybody needs to be vaccinated. There are homeopathic ways around this, like homeoprophylaxis and other things that should be available, um, and shouldn't be discriminated against. So that's6638 all. Um, thank you for listening.
SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Thank you at this time. Drew Perlman.6645
Hi. Yes, I'm here. Welcome.
DREW PERLMAN - CONCERNED CITIZEN - HB 2411 - HB 2271 - SB 1517 - Thank you very much. Thank you all for being here, Jack. I'm from Framingham. You're my rep. We had a nice talk a couple of weeks ago. Um, so, thank you. Thank you everybody for being here today. Um, so, so my background is I'm a filmmaker and I've made a series of documentaries about health over the past decade. And but I'm not here to talk about health because this is really about, you know, the freedom to choose and this is the reason why I wanted to be here today um is, you know, it really comes down to who is going to make the decision for you know, vaccination, is it going to be done by the parent, by the individual or is it going to be done by the Department of Health?
And that's what to me is so troubling about these bills here is as someone like myself and probably all of you, you know, we're believers in freedom. And freedom is what this country is all about. And I feel as though these bills in one fell swoop remove religious freedom, medical freedom, the freedom of families, parents. Um, it removes just about every form of freedom that we have. Um and I feel as though one of the big problems is that government, especially during times like 2020 or times of 911 has the tendency to overreach. And I feel as though we the people have to be here to remind the government that this is why we're here. This is what separates our country from everybody else it's freedom. Um, and I think that's6755 really important. I mean6758 my father fought in Vietnam for freedom and I'm sure many of you have relatives who fought for and may have even died for freedom.
Um, so I think we really have to be reminded what it's about. It's really not about whether the vaccine is good or bad or whether any medical intervention is good or bad. It's really about having the choice and the freedom to make these decisions. And just the last thing I know we're getting late on time here, but the last thing I wanted to say is and we just celebrated Independence Day. And I feel as though if you were to have presented these these two bill or the uh you don't know what I'm talking6796 about, but 2411 and 2271.
If you presented these two bills to our founding fathers, I think they would roll over in their graves because you're getting rid of all of these freedoms. And I hate to say this but if you presented these bills to the Communist Party of China, they would love these bills because what they're doing is you're you're taking the power and you're giving6819 it to the state. And I think that just really gets to the heart of what6824 this is all about. Um again, you guys are all doing a great job. I mean this is democracy in action right here, So but again, we've got to fight for freedom. Thank you. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Thank you. Mr Pearlman is the daughter of a Vietnam vet who died 100% related to service. I believe we all think we're here trying to actually fight for freedom and that's what the hearing is, it's the democratic process, even if we have different opinions and different conclusions, but I do appreciate your testimony um and being here and um at this time and I'm only chiming in because I'm the daughter of Vietnam vet, so I appreciate your testimony and I'm so glad you actually had conversations with your representative um who is still here, I will note who is who is making the commitment to be here for all these hours. So6875 he's doing a great job listening. Um thank you. Um at this time I would like to call, I'm gonna let you know, jennifer and whistle, then Francesco Spagnola and then Michele gamble. So I'll start with jennifer and whistle. Are you here jennifer?
Okay. Um, Francesco Spagna and I'm so sorry. If I'm not getting this correctly, please do correct me close enough. Spagna like lasagna. Nice to thank you. No problem. I want to get it right. You never forget it. Right.
FRANCESCO SPAGNA - CONCERNED CITIZEN - HB 2411 - HB 2271 - SB 1517 - Thank you. Um, I'm here to oppose H 2411, S1517, H 2271. Everything in my testimony is based on factual6924 data, which I'll submit and side with my written testimony. I need to say that I do support vaccinations. I fully realize they have saved countless lives a benefit to society will continue to be. Um, but 2411 is very biased against one's sincerely religious beliefs and one's morally formed conscience. Many who support the bill, I said that no major religion or religious doctrines against vaccinations and therefore the exemption should be eliminated, but that premise is fundamentally flawed. Um the exemption is not based on any specific religion or doctrine. And quite frankly, if it was law it would to be choosing one religion over another. That's much bigger than any one religion or doctrine.
Look I was raised hardcore catholic, I was an altar boy as an adult that carried statues of saints through city streets. Um we don't always agree with 100% our church says and does. For instance, many Catholics feel morally and spiritually justified accessing birth control despite the official catholic doctrine that opposes it. So our choices are based on personal moral conscience and our spiritual reflection rather than any official doctrine or teaching. The Mass DPH data simply doesn't support these bills. Exemption rates are at extremely low levels around 1%. and have been on a downward turn for the last two years. while rates of vaccination have been increasing. We're currently at about 98% for school immunizations across the board. We've been a hard immunity for quite a while.
Um Many states, sorry, many schools have low and moderate with zero exemptions. That really points to the true problem. The gap population of kids without vaccinations on file, but they don't have exemptions. Um so the premise that eliminating religious exemption will increase vaccination rates I think is flawed. It won't if you really want to increase rates then really the low hanging fruit here is to address the gap population. That's that's the real problem not exemption. The other elephant in the room is the extreme difficulty in obtaining medical exemptions even for kids, with documented medical conditions for whom further vaccination would be detrimental in that respect.
That the system really is broken. But these bills don't address and I think we need to. Um in closing and we'll see that S 1517. Well, it does purport to preserve the latest exemption. I think it effectively eliminates it primarily through the portion that state department has determined that as a parent you have to sign a form that states the department has determined that refusing to immunize may result in serious illness or death to the participant for others. And it will require a child's physician to acknowledge receipt of such a form. Uh, I can't imagine a doctor who would, SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
cool thank you. If you have more to say, please do feel free to submit in writing your testimony to the, to the committee. At this time. I would welcome Michelle Gamble.
You called me previously, your Jonah Francesco. I'm sorry who is speaking. I just wanted to say you just called me previously jennifer. Okay. Hold on jennifer. Um, is Michelle Gamble here? Yes, I am.7132 Okay. Michelle you and then I will call on jennifer and whistle.
MICHELLE GAMBLE - CONCERNED CITIZEN - HB 2411 - HB 2271 - SB 1517 - Thank you for this opportunity to speak. I'm here to speak in opposition of H 2411, S 1517, and H 2271. I'm speaking as an educator of over 25 years as well as a mother of five children. And I'm also speaking as a7155 natural care practitioner for over 20 years. I am an author also of two books and one of those books was about Mommy. And Mommy is about realizing that we have uh an innate7169 relationship with our children. A lot of times we are told that major religions are not against what is being done here, but religion is not about a dogma. Religion is not about some pope or any other person. Religion is a personal relationship that we have with that, which is considered holy and sacred, and there is nothing more holy and sacred to a mother than her7198 child.
I'm also speaking on the behalf of hundreds and thousands of people of color who are at disproportionate risk when taking vaccines. It has been proven that we are at higher risk when taking vaccines for adverse effects. I'm also here on behalf of the countless mothers that I have dealt with personally who have opted out of the public school educational system because they had to. And these mothers were forced to be able to have to educate their children when that is not what they were designed to do. The school system was designed to educate our children. But when we have to choose between God, when we have to choose between what is right for our children and education, many of us are forced to be placed in that situation. And because of that, I saw countless parents giving substandard education to their children because that was the only thing that they could do.
Otherwise, they were in danger of jeopardizing the health and well-being of their child.7266 In fact, the life of7267 their child. There are countless people who have been jeopardized by these vaccines and these are the people on whose behalf I'm speaking. Each and every one of these proposed regulations go contrary to a mother's desire to protect her child. I have no idea of the country that we have become when we have decided that a legislator, a stranger knows better than a mother with regards to the life and well-being of her child. I bless you and I hope that you will allow God to lead you in the right way. Thank you for this opportunity to speak.
SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Thank you. Um at this time jennifer Entwistle. Are you still here?
Crystal jennifer?
What was the name? Jennifer and twist? Yes, I'm here. Well, I'm jennifer.
I'm sorry. My phone is really I am. Yeah, Jennifer, you have three minutes. Welcome.
JENNIFER ENTWISTLE - CONCERNED CITIZEN - HB 2411 - HB 2271 - SB 1517 - Okay. In 2014 I took an antibiotic and started breaking out into hives every time I was outside. It gave me an auto-immune disease cold urticaria and now I'm allergic to the cold. I can't be outside in under 55°. I can't breathe the air under 20° or my throat starts to close and I begin to go into anaphylaxis. I can't drink a cool drink, parfait food, eat a salad, clean snow off my car or put groceries away without having a reaction. There is no medication that treats the severity of my disease, all from taking an antibiotic. I also have rem behavior disorder, a sleep disorder, 65% of people with it are diagnosed with Lewy body dementia or Parkinson's disease. Within five years, I've had it for 10. I'm only 39 years old. There is no cure for either.
My path to motherhood was7378 not an easy one. My daughter7380 is the result of IVF. Science gave me the only child I can ever have and I respect it. I also honor my morally formed conscience that I was given this child by God and the decisions regarding her safety are in my hands. It has led me to research everything My daughter comes in contact with. She has had vaccines. She has also had reactions to doctors can't explain. Parents are presented with vaccines without time to adequately research them. I read the actual inserts that no doctor ever gives you from the CDC and make the choice which is greater the vaccine or the disease. People fear the under-vaccinated children are going to give their Children diseases, but7412 these children don't go around spreading diseases They don't have, they are not disease vectors.
There has been one confirmed measles deaths in the US in the last 27 years. One. I'm not just missing the immunocompromised. I am one of them. I am the one in a million adverse reaction. Any child, not up to date on everything they put on the CDC schedule will be barred from school7431 by these bills. We are part of the 2.6% of the population where vaccines are contraindicated, but that doesn't qualify us for a medical exemption. Mandatory vaccination is7439 not body autonomy. What happens to my body by choice. During my pregnancy I declined vaccines due to the fear of worsening my condition. However, my hospital discharge papers indicate that they administered7450 them. I was told it must have been a mistake and I still don't know if I was vaccinated against my consent.
The Community Immunity Act grants any medical professional freedom to vaccinate a child without parental consent, reviewing their medical history and even informing the parents. It also states that the DPH may change the requirements of the exemption forms without legislative process, taking the law out of your hands and your constituents. This is exactly what happened with the flu mandate last year. My husband and I were both born in Madison. Have never lived anywhere else. But if these bills passed, would we be forced to move away from all we've ever known.
We imagine my daughter going to school where we purchased7483 a home with the same Children from beginning to end. There is alarming wording peppered throughout this bill and I beg every legislator to thoroughly read it before making a decision. While it is painted to preserve exemptions it is an assault on our freedoms. I am the one who should be making medical decisions for my family. Thank you. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Oh, thank you. Um, at this time I would welcome meg Rosin.
Okay. I already testified. Thank you. They had me and Jessica, Sorry. If sometimes we try to do it, we might have had people on both bills. Um, I would ask you if you've already testified to please actually sign off of the Microsoft platforms. Uh, so that's why I'm on Sorry.
Okay. I didn't quite get that, but thank you. Just anyone who's had the chance to testify, um, if you could just sign off, that would be great. Um, I would ask um and thank you for letting me know you spoke already. Um, Joanna Socko.
Thank you. I'm here. Welcome.
JOANNA SACCO - CONCERNED CITIZEN - HB 2411 - HB 2271 - SB 1517 - Thank you. My name is Joanna Sako from Stow Massachusetts and I'm here to oppose the Community Immunity Act and Bill H 2411. It may surprise you, but I'm actually here testifying as a liberal Democrat. I'm college-educated. I worked in research at Dartmouth Medical School. And as a cancer fighter care deeply about public health. My strong opposition to these bills does not fit my general party line narrative. I am a mother of four the eldest of whom is an amazing 11 year old LGBTQ child and another amazing vaccine-injured child who has received services to public school. I will fight side by side with you for social justice for these communities as I know many of you are very passionate about these issues.
It's confusing to me why you are also supporting bills that will result in some of these children losing their education if these bills pass. Children who would be further marginalized and discriminated against for having a religious exemption. How can you7616 so passionately fight to end discrimination and segregation of LGBTQ children or special needs children but you will also fight for them to lose their education and segregate them based on your parents' faith. I would like you to better understand my position. I was born in communist Poland and at eight7633 years old my mother fled the country, choosing to live in the US a country where she could send me to school and know that I wouldn't have medical procedures done without her consent. Yes. This actually happened to me in Poland when I was a child.
7645 She7645 also wanted to freely and openly practice her religious beliefs without being penalized for it. My mother gave up everything to provide that for me. And in turn, my husband and I worked so so hard to provide that life for our kids. We are devastated that everything we have worked for for our children will be ripped away should these bills pass. Will I have to flee my country the same way My mother did for the same reasons? Some of you may be thinking so just vaccinate your kids and that won't happen. We did and still selectively do. Our second son is vaccine injured and medical exemptions are practically impossible to obtain. As you've heard today. It is against our morally formed conscience and religion to further injure my child and put him and his siblings at risk.
Our faith is7687 as much a part of us as our son's sexual orientation is to him. My Children are not a statistic or a number. They are innocent and amazing and are worthy of an education. My children cannot spread diseases they do not have. And should there be an outbreak, we will comply with the school, um, district's quarantine protocols and exemptions which we were made aware of. We are asking you to fully understand the weight of your vote as it will bring immense change and hardship down upon my family and many, many more. Vaccine injury is real and I don't feel like that is being really heard Um, in these hearings, just like it didn't7729 seem to be heard in 2019. When we also had these hearings. We may be just 1% of the kids of the families with kids in school. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Um I would encourage the stock. Oh please feel free to submit your testimony in writing. Um and to be clear you are being heard. We're sitting here and committed to staying until everyone who has signed up gets to be heard and were also reading through every piece of testimony that has been sent to us. Um
At this time I would ask Jesse H. I have Jesse H that's all
okay. I'm gonna move on. Um Shandi Raposa.
Hi, can you hear me? Hi ken is this Shandi Shandi welcome. I know I can see you on my screen so I know you've been on for a while so thanks for your patience and welcome.
SHANDY RAPOSA - CONCERNED CITIZEN - SB 1517 - HB 2271 - HB 2411 - Um Okay I start now. Bills S. 1517 H. 2271 and H. 2411 are unnecessary an overreach. They violate our Children's basic human rights, our parental right to make informed choices for our Children and our religious freedoms. How can you fight for social equality, speak out against discrimination and then propose legislation that would strip thousands of children of their civil right to an education due to their7827 sincerely held religious beliefs? This makes no sense. It's the opposite of what you say. You stand for what you took an oath for. All of these bills demonstrate systemic bias against7838 those with differing religious beliefs. And if passed lawsuits will follow because as much as you say, this is not unconstitutional I believe the constitution disagrees.
Your push to remove the religious exemption will deny in-person education to those who need it most including but not limited to communities of color and those with special needs who rely on in-school programming. Those utilizing an IEP are especially at risk to loss of access to valuable and necessary7867 in-school services. It has been well documented that education is critical to future economic stability as well as positive physical and mental health outcomes. Moving one's education is not only dangerous, it is an unfair punishment. Many families today, especially single-family homes, do not have the means to home school. They don't have the luxury of taking time off from work to home school their children all day, five days a week when they are the only source of income.
Losing the religious exemption for many means the loss of emotional and financial stability, a roof over their heads, and food over their mouths. Denying one's education by removing the religious exemption will cause short and long term irreparable harm. My 14 year old daughter is about to enter high school in the fall. She's a bright young woman an artist, musician, a mentor in her community, and an honorary student. She poses no threat to her peers whatsoever and is accepted by all. Regardless of her vaccine status and spiritual beliefs. She is not a disease vector. It's impossible to spread a disease that you don't have. And in Massachusetts, there have been zero outbreaks of vaccine-preventable illness in schools in over a decade. I'm 38 years old and unvaccinated myself and have never been a threat to my community. I am proud to say, I am the first in my family to go to college and I'm currently getting my master's degree in acupuncture and Chinese medicine.
This is a huge accomplishment. If these bills become law, not only will my daughter be stripped of her right to continue her education, I will lose the opportunity to finish mine. So you're not only harming children by taking away their educational opportunities due to religious bias, but you're also taking away opportunities from adults who wish to continue their education and make a better life for themselves. It is clear that we, the people of Massachusetts do not want this legislation and our voices matter too thank you. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Thank you.
At this time, I would ask Gina column to join us.
Okay? Um, and I see you on the screen there. So7997 I know that Dr Richard Moskowitz is with us. Welcome
Mr Moskowitz. You have to, a newt
gets us, gets the best of us.
There we go. Can you hear me now?
I can welcome.
RICHARD MOSKOWITZ - WHOLE HEALTH NOW - HB 2411 - SB 1517 - Thank you. I'm Richard Moskowitz. I want to speak against the H 2411 and S 1517. I'm a medical doctor. I practiced family medicine for 53 years before I retired last year. What I have to say is based on the huge discrepancy between what we've been taught and what is really happening. On the one hand, we are being told what we fondly wish to believe that vaccines are uniformly safe and effective across the board so that it's okay and even desirable to pile on as many as we can and to repeat them as often as we like. But in my 53 years as a family doctor, I have cared for8067 many, many children who have never been well since this or that vaccine. That is the reason why I oppose these bills that would eliminate or curtail the exemptions that are now in place.
If vaccines were indeed as safe and effective as advertised, then these thousands of thousands of parents who claim that their children were killed or maimed by them would have to be lying, deluded, ignorant or stupid. I offer my experience in evidence that they are none of these. On the contrary, they are for the most part dedicated and thoughtful parents whose only mistake was to have followed their doctor's orders and done exactly what they were told. Far from ignorant anti-vaxxers who reject science they want and expect nothing more than public recognition of what they have suffered and what they must continue to live through although they surely deserve much more than that. Ex vaxxers would be the more accurate label. In conclusion, I would leave you with a bit of common sense that caring parents are more accurate judges of what really happen to their own kids than the drug companies who profit obscenely from selling vaccines and can't even be sued for the harm they cause a free ride granted to no other industry. Thank you. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Thank you. Doctor Moskowitz. Um at this time I will ask Gina column, are you here?
Okay? Christina bussing, bussing its use in its
Okay. I have dr erin O'malley.
Right, Brianna Tompkins.
I'm here. Can you hear me? Yes, who's speaking, Brianna Tompkins, Brianna welcome. Thank you.
BRIANA TOMPKINS - CONCERNED CITIZEN - HB 2411 - HB 2271 - SB 1517 - Thank you for hearing my testimony today. My name is Briana and I'm opposed to H 2411 and the Community immunity Act. For 18 years I was part of the 1% of Massachusetts students who used a religious exemption. For the past four years I have been advocating for the for the preservation of religious exemptions so my daughter and future children can have the same education and life experience that I did. The Community Immunity Act is a dangerous bill and8229 would create extremely controversial policy. Massachusetts is better than this. Is it a good medicine8234 to treat a child and then hide that treatment from their parent? Is it a good medicine to allow providers to treat a person without first looking into their prior medical history? Do you believe all minors adequately understand drug inserts enough to make a decision by themselves? The answer is no. And I believe you all would agree.
Between the committee members, you all have 31 children and with a 2-3% vaccine reaction rate, that would mean that one of them will react to a vaccine at some point. One of your children or grandchildren may need an exemption at some point in time. Why would you want to set up a future world where your children could be denied an education? Do you seriously believe that your family will never need an exemption? With over 200 new vaccines currently being created do you honestly believe all of them will fall in line with your religious beliefs? SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Miss Tompkins? I'm going to ask you to provide testimony questioning members8289 of the committee testimony.
TOMPKINS - H 2411 would deny a child the right to an education for refusing just one vaccine. A child whose religion guides them toward saving themselves for marriage and avoiding intravenous drugs should not be kicked out of school for declining the Hepatitis B vaccine. This is wrong. Two years ago on my senator's personal page, she wrote and I quote, I want our young people to be able to get the education they want and deserve end8319 quote. On her own religious persecution, she wrote, and I quote, people are treated poorly when they are different from the majority of the people in power. These words were written by my senator, Senator Rebecca Rausch herself and yet the very bill she's created would destroy families whose religious beliefs differ from hers. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
And don't leave our people who are trying to not directly to or about the person. Please keep it to the legislation
TOMPKINS - Differ from yours. Please don't create an immediate public health issue by removing healthy children from school. Please don't create a two-tiered society where some are deserving of education and others left out. Please don't create a world where religious beliefs are not your own and have to be approved by a government entity. These bills are dangerous and destructive and go against the very foundation our country and state were founded on. Please vote no on these bills. Thank you.
I'm going to remind the public questioning the legislators and making this personal about anybody who's filed the bill or members of the committee is not protocol. Please keep your comments to the bill. Express why you support it. Why you oppose about the legislation at hand? Not specifically about the legislators. Thank you. Once you've given your testimony, I remind you. We do ask you to please sign out at this time. I will ask brady Hoover to step forward. So SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
I'm going to ask Grady Hoover and I've got somebody else who's on that8412 is not muted.
Okay, move on
Maria carter go up, Potapenko and I apologize.
Hi, I'm here. Can you hear me? Are you? Is this Maria? It is Maria welcome.
Thank you. Turn on the camera. It's my first time to forgive me. I'm sure I'm probably gonna mess up and you kind of using it. So don't worry,
MARIA CARTER - CONCERNED CITIZEN - HB 2271 - SB 1517 - I don't have prepared written testimony, will submit it later, but I wanted to say that I do oppose the bill S 1517 H 2271 an act somewhat in the community immunity and that is because I do believe that this bill will take away the rights of the family, each individual family to make decisions for their children, which is it's just taking the freedom away. I want to say that immigrant from Russia, I came here in 2003 and I fall in love with this country, how much freedom and how much individuals can express themselves through religious beliefs any kind of belief. This is this an amazing, amazing country and this bill against everything I've ever believed about those countries, I do oppose it because it takes away a lot of freedom from parents. It is really sad. So I hope my testimony will be heard and thank you.
SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
thank you for your testimony.
Um, at this time I would invite Cristina barefoot followed by uh brady Hoovers is on but Christina barefoot. Hi this is Christina. Can you hear me? We can welcome
CHRISTINA BAREFOOT - CONCERNED CITIZEN - SB 1517 - HB 2271 - Thank you. Hi, my8531 name's Christina Barefoot. I strongly oppose S 1517 and H 2271 acts promoting community immunity. The title of these bills will make one believe they may be helpful, but once you understand the oppression, discrimination, harassment, and infringement on liberties these bills represent, I know in my heart you'll do the right thing and oppose these dehumanizing bills. Today we say lawmakers and government officials have no place in decision-making process of a person's fundamental right to obtain an education and rear their children. Today we8559 say that people exercising their right to education and body autonomy are the decision makers with their own agency, it's their body and their choice.
No person should be forced to explain to DPH why they are receiving a8570 medical exemption. Nor should DPH who is not ethically bound to the patient's best interests who has no clinical relevant experience or even met the patient, have the final say in the patient's medical care and education. No youth survivor of a vaccine injury should have to ask DPH for consent to their fundamental right to an education. No one should be forced to leave the commonwealth in order to have access to an education, their autonomy and humanity matters and is valued. As a mother to vaccine-injured Children I have many personal reasons why I oppose this bill.
More importantly for this vote as a senator, you have an obligation to ensure that each and every one of your constituents can8603 make health care decisions consistent with their own beliefs and their own timeline without coercion or discrimination. Every person you represent should have the ability to decide for themselves whether, when and how to parent, which includes the need for parental consent to any medical8618 treatment. You must oppose this bill. If you recognize the speech is because Becca Rausch used a speech in the context of abortion when she urged you to pass the vote that protected a person's right to privacy throughout the autonomy and the right to parent.
8633 The8633 outcome of the bill that passed was loss of human life because it was that important to all of you to ensure that the right to body autonomy and rearing children was the8640 utmost priority as it should be. If you were to support her current bill, you'll be showing blatant discrimination against a vulnerable group of commonwealth citizens. If you supported body autonomy and the right to parent In one law where loss of human life was the outcome, You can't support a bill that removes it in another, especially where there's no prevalence incident or compelling purpose that supports this8660 bill. And its colossal interference on individual liberty would never be supported by the strict scrutiny of our courts.
Rebecca Rausch also spoke about gross inequities in our healthcare system for abortions. Well for children who have had vaccine injuries these inequities are growing at rapid speeds. I will send you supporting information of a horrifying event that took place earlier on in the pandemic that left my child while recovering from an unknown respiratory illness without a physician because we declined to get his Tdap. The neglected malice of the practice and practitioner on a child with documented vaccine injury and documented immunity to TDAP will show you why parental rights and parent's inherent instinct to protect their Children supersedes any doctor or DPH. There are so many more reasons why you must oppose this bill. I look forward to sharing them in my written testimony. Thank you. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Thank you. At this time I'd welcome Jessica walk
Stacy boroughs.
Mhm
Janet Stearman.
I'm here Stacy boy. Welcome.
Yeah. Yeah,
Jessica. You have three minutes. Welcome. Uh huh. Just
JESSICA LOCKE - CONCERNED CITIZEN - HB 2271 - SB 1517 - Hi, thank you. I'll keep this short and sweet. I'm opposing the community immunity bill. As per the Massachusetts constitution, I have the right to worship God in the manner most agreeable to my own conscience. This means that my religious beliefs do not have to follow a bullet pointed list8759 of tenants that have been predetermined on my behalf by religious organization or governmental body. Removing the8764 religious exemption would be in violation of my rights to practice my religion as I see fit and my right to instill my deeply held values in my children. This bill is discriminatory and would deny my child the right to an education based on faith.
The removal of religious exemptions will place unnecessary burdens on families who will be forced to find other avenues to educate their children. I just want to remind you of a few articles written in the Massachusetts constitution, such as the right to worship in a manner consistent with the dictates of one's own conscience without restraint of personal liberty, and that no law shall be passed prohibiting the free exercise of religion. The Massachusetts General Law, Section 5 Chapter 76 states that every person shall have a right to attend the public schools of the town where he actually resides, and that no person shall be excluded from or discriminated against an admission to a public school of any town or in obtaining the advantages,8820 privileges and courses of study of such public school, on account of race, color, sex, gender, identity,8825 religion, national origin or sexual orientation. Thank you.
SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Thank you. Um, this time Stacy Burrows. Yes, thank you.
STACY BORIS - CONCERNED CITIZEN - HB 2271 - HB 2411 - SB 1517 - My name is Stacy Boris. I'm a mother of two a healthcare provider and I have been a physical therapist for over 15 years. Bills H 2411, S 1517 and H 2271 are unnecessary and discriminatory. First, I want to clarify that religion includes not only traditional organized religions but also religious beliefs that are new, uncommon, not part of a formal church. Through my religious beliefs I am to follow my morally formed conscious so that I may come to my creator in good faith, of whom is my final judgment. I have seen far too many patients failed by our healthcare system, often leading them to strengthen their faith and religious beliefs. When I had my first son finding the right pediatrician was a priority to me.
I can't tell you8886 how many doctors' offices I8887 called to ask if they were accepting new patients and would be asked if I planned on following the vaccination schedule because if not, they wouldn't accept me. Bills like this are making doctors afraid. I was a new mom with a lot of questions and concerns who is religiously and morally bound to protect my children, both in their physical and spiritual formation. I wanted to make sure my children didn't end up with the health struggles that my husband and I have. These bills would make it next to impossible to find healthcare providers that were willing to have open discussions with patients and families especially if they had to sign off on my religious beliefs.
One size fits all medicine may work for some people, but there's a percentage of the population it doesn't. And the more restrictions we place on health care providers, but less critical thinking they'll do. These bills would also create religious discrimination in doctor's offices as well as schools, creating segregation, increasing fear and bullying, which is the8938 last thing this country needs. I have personally experienced bullying in my workplace over my religious exemption. My job was threatened two years ago my son was sent home from daycare when he was six months old because he had two mosquito bites. I had to get a doctor's note to allow him back to school. My pediatrician thought it was a joke, but it was just an example of the discrimination I experienced for having a religious exemption.
My Children are not a health threat. Lastly amending Section 12F to allow a minor to consent to preventative care without a parent's knowledge just isn't right. As a 40 year old adult, I have a hard time asking questions about my own care. A child does not have the capacity to make health-related decisions and should never be put in such a situation. Health care needs to be and always should be a collaborative effort between providers and family. I can tell you from my 15 plus years in healthcare that we have many other public health threats that need to be addressed.
The rise of chronic health conditions in children, mental health issues. That's where we need to focus our efforts. My 90 year old patients are my healthiest and children are becoming the sickest. We need to change healthcare. We do not need to change or eliminate religious and medical exemptions. Education is crucial for successful life outcomes for both individuals and society as a whole. All Children are worthy of an education. Thank9010 you. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Thank you This time. I welcome Janet Stearman.
Okay. Nick Elias filling Phil Andrea knows
Sylvie Corey.
Mm
Hello, can you hear me? Yes, this is9041 Sylvie Corey. Welcome. You have three minutes Southie.
SILVIE CORIE - CONCERNED CITIZEN - HB 2271 - HB 2411 - SB 1517 - Thank you. I'm opposing bills H 2271, S 1517, and H 2411. I a woman claim my God given rights over my body and I claim all medical decisions for myself and my children. My religious beliefs are not in alignment with the government's regulations. The government's acceptance of these bills would cause a harm on children, their parents and the whole society. I oppose any bill that forces people to inject aborted fetuses material into human bodies. I also oppose the forced injection of harmful heavy metals such as aliminum and thimerosal which are banned in some countries, which are known to9092 cause many, neurological and physical disturbances in the body causing autism and developmental delay in many children or death.
I oppose any forced speech, such as the speech found in contract that people are forced to sign by a public health policy. Such contracts have statements like a non-immunization may cause death. A person cannot faithfully sign a contract containing statements contradicting their beliefs. I oppose vaccination of minors without parental consent, which is highly unlawful. An institution which may be represented by some corrupt individuals, cannot make the decisions over a child in the care of a woman and men who are the child's parents. The parents know their child's health best. The choice to vaccinate or not, vaccinate must come from the parent. I believe in a natural immunity. I grew up in Europe in a time of minimal immunization. The requirement was roughly five vaccines for a child during early youth.
All childhood illnesses were normal to get and we dealt with it just like with any other regular-season flu or cold. I had most of the childhood illnesses such as measles as well as all of my friends. None of us was afraid that the illness would, none of us was afraid. But here the illnesses are demonized in the media. We know that uh this is the way to build our immunity. Everyone should be made aware of the importance of informed consent. Most parents don't know what vaccines contain and what harms it can cause. The public should learn about natural prevention of illnesses, natural treatments and the strengthening of the immune system based on natural health lifestyle. The human body created by God is not a genetic mistake, but rather it has abilities to recover and heal if we have the right approach. The human body does not thrive on chemicals. If these bills are accepted, the, SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
farmer, Thank you. I encourage anyone who has not been able to get their full testimony in two. Please submit the rest of it in writing to the committee. Um, and just as, uh, we still have over 300 people who are waiting to talk. So we're gonna keep moving through this. Um, at this time I would welcome Kelly Travis.
Okay, Anita Lieberman.
Sorry, I am here. Who is this? This is kelly. Welcome kelly. You have three minutes.
KELLY TRAVIS - CONCERNED CITIZEN - HB 2411 - SB 1517 - HB 2272 - Okay, thank you. My name is Kelly Travis. I'm a lifelong resident of Sandwich and I'm here today to express my opposition to bill H 2411, S 1517, and its companion bill. My husband and I have chosen my hometown to raise our two beautiful and healthy children. We are both equal contributors to our household and pay toward Sandwich's taxes which fund exceptional public9289 schools. I work full time taking care of our sick population as the director of an ultrasound lab and my husband is a public servant to our state as a firefighter and paramedic. If my children are kicked out of school for our family, sincerely held beliefs, the state essentially9305 says that our family has no value here and is not welcome in this state.
Cape Cod is already a place where young families struggle to keep roots and we need both jobs to be able to stay here. We cannot just quit and home school as people suggest. This past year has shown parents, educators and the legislators that it is critical all children are allowed equal access Um, excuse me, access to equal and in-person educational opportunities. But now this legislation proposed says it's okay that we discriminate against a small subpopulation of children by eliminating the right to an education. Of all the times in history now is not the time to discriminate against our kids. My son Callan will likely need assistance and accommodations from federal programs offered in the public school as an IEP 504 Plan for most, if not all of his educational years.
H 2411 would deny him his right to those programs if homeschooling would be his only option. But both my children may also not have the same9369 opportunities as their peers to be in the private sector either. As a Community Immunity Act would allow private programs to make their own set of rules in regards to vaccines. These bills could also put a target on my family and allow for religious persecution because of the elevated risk awareness that the Community Immunity Act proposes. The journey our family has been on with our son has brought us to an understanding that the human body is made divinely and perfectly without intervention. Our faith has brought us to receive that my husband and I must protect our family from all potential harm, including receiving medical interventions when there is no critical or acute danger before us.
Based on our morally formed9410 conscious, it is our greatest job, our God-given job to protect our children. Our state has a history of supporting all. We support communities of color, race, sexual orientation, but we will not stand up and protect our religious community either? Please please think about this small population that will be discriminated against if these proposed bills were to move forward. Please vote No. Thank you. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Yeah, thank you at this time. I welcome Anita Lieberman.
ANITA LIEBERMAN - CONCERNED CITIZEN - HB 2411 - HB 2271 - SB 1517 - Good afternoon. If you listen to one parent today, I implore you to carefully listen to my testimony. My background is in pharmaceuticals and diagnostics. I strongly oppose H 2411, H 2271, S 151. As a parent of three children, I was staunchly pro-vaccine. Formerly9457 working in the pharmaceutical industry. I contributed to lobbyists on a regular basis. Every paycheck I sent money to pharmaceutical lobbyists. So my testimony comes from both sides, all ends of the spectrum. So really please try to pay attention to my few minutes remaining minutes. When I was pregnant with my first daughter, I sent an email out to all seven grandparents warning them they would not be able to meet their granddaughter if they didn't take a few vaccines before well before I9491 had my child. Thankfully, they all agreed. I'm happy to9493 send you all of the documentation from that as well as anything else that I reference in my written testimony.
My first daughter followed the vaccine schedule fast forward to having twins a few years after that my child was left in the NICU for a little bit and due to an unfortunate negligent medical mistake was given the wrong breast milk. That mother tested positive for HIV. Yes HIV. So when I have a child in the NICU twins I had to decide whether what was going to happen with my daughter with that daughter's future. And basically, specialty drugs were rushed in and my daughter was given AZT and Nevirapine as a NICU pre-me child. Needless to say it had devastating effects on her immune system. Her immune system was destroyed. The first thing they did when they gave the wrong breast milk two hours later was to give one vaccine. Fine. No problem.
Give her these drugs a few days later throws her immune system into the opposite direction. Three months later she has another vaccine and within 24 hours looks like a burn victim from head to toe. It is not your typical reaction. It is something that is your worst nightmare that could9561 possibly happen. Her9562 twin, absolutely nothing happened to her twin because her twin didn't need to take the drugs because her twin was not exposed to that breast milk. I can't put into words what this has done to our lives. It has literally destroyed our lives with medical treatment all over the country. Tens of thousands of dollars have been spent. And I am telling you this from someone who is so pro vaccine and someone who has their children on a regular schedule. Yet there are some Children sometimes have a need to not have certain vaccines.
However, her children's Boston Children's doctor and her MGH doctor will not write a medical exemption because there is not a clear cut and dry need on the CDC website for her to have a medical exemption. So I strongly urge you to vote no for these bills because children like mine fall through the cracks and I will not light my child on fire for one of my other children. Everyone needs to see that there are a spectrum with all of these bills and it is not fair to uh compromise one child for another. I would like to just make one more point. It is unethical, SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Thank you. Please do feel free to submit written testimony. Um, if you have more to share at this time, I would ask Angelina Lindsay to please step forward
Bonnie Manila.
Yeah. Yeah. I just want to remind folks because I think it can be a little jarring to just have your testimony cut off. We are asking you to just monitor yourself with the three minutes, but our three minutes you are just shut off and that's because we are trying to get through this list so that everybody can have a chance to testify. We were offered the chance to reduce time to only have so many hours of testimony and both my co chair and I thought it was important to do this and allow anybody who wanted to speak to have the chance to speak. So I just want to share that in case you haven't heard our, our comments on this earlier and I do believe it can be jarring, especially if you're sharing something very personal. Um At this time I would ask um if Bonnie Manila is not here. Um Deirdre folly
holly Crosby.
Hi, I'm here. I'm holly Crosby. Welcome holly. Thank you.
HOLLY CROSBY - CONCERNED CITIZEN - HB 2411 - Hello I am a mother of three children testifying today against H 2411. A federally funded study conducted by Harvard Pilgrim Health Care concluded that between 2007 and 2010 2.6% of vaccines administered resulted in an adverse9735 reaction. My son is part9737 of this vulnerable subpopulation of children. He has9739 an MTHFR gene mutation which makes it more difficult for his system to break down substances like heavy metals or eliminate toxins. With each vaccine, he had high fevers and extreme distress. His mental health deteriorated with each one. We did not realize the connection until it was too late. Vaccines led to his ADHD, extreme debilitating anxiety. OCD, Defiance, school refusal, and depression. I consulted with traditional MDs, holistic practitioners, nutritionists and all sorts of therapists.
We were guided to heal him and detox his system through diet supplements, neurofeedback and other therapies. Today he is 17 years old, thriving socially loves school and9777 could not be a happier, more easy going kid. It is nothing short of a miracle how he has transformed. What I want to focus on in the short time I get to speak to you is this we could not have healed him without the resources and services of our free and appropriate public education. Home-schooling would not have been an option. The special education program he needed including behavior specialists, reading specialists, occupational therapists uniquely trained and seasoned teachers we could not have provided via homeschooling. Had he not had the services of our public school system, our son would still be plagued with debilitating behavioral and mental health issues today.
I needed my son in school so that he could focus on, I could focus on healing him. I was able to stay home yet. I worked9821 full time to fight to get him on an IEP, consult and track his progress at school, overhaul his diet, research special therapies and work with special various holistic practitioners to heal him. It took me nine extremely long9831 and difficult years. These decisions you are making have enormous gravity to them. You are putting parents through extreme stress and sleepless nights at even the thought of these bills being passed. You may think if you don't want to give your child the vaccine just don't send them to school. I am very concerned about families who do not have the financial resources that I have being put in a position to not only lose an income, but to face educating their needs child.
And in that case the last of their focus would be to heal their child. What will become of these children? The only thing more horrifying than the fact that my child has suffered in the way he has is the idea that someone from the DPH can decide that my religious exemption is not valid. I know for certain no one from the Department of Public Health can ever begin to imagine what my son or my family has been through. Whatever you can imagine it is 1000 times worse. There were times I wanted to end both his life and mine to end the hell we were going through. We're finally out of that hell. He could not be a happier teenager, loving school and being with his friends there. I cannot, he cannot even speak of the traumas he went through in the past. But he has such a bright future today. Please. I beg of you for the sake of all parents of this vulnerable subpopulation do not take away our freedom to choose what is best for our children. Thank you. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Thank you. At this time I would ask
Kathleen lynch.
Okay.
Gloria Low
Cara. Such Acropolis. Gloria Gloria welcome to.
GLORIA LOWELL - CONCERNED CITIZEN - HB 2411 - SB 1468 - Hi. Thank you. Um, I'm Gloria LOwelland I oppose H 2411 an act relative to the vaccines and prevent any future outbreaks. I work in healthcare. I'm graduating in May as a speech-language pathologist. Uh, so I treat very sick children, kids in wheelchairs, kids with breathing tubes. This bill would deny these children an education. And many children and many families they can't afford to home school. When kids do lose access to education, they also lose their speech therapy and occupational therapy services. So I couldn't treat them in the schools for their speech language and swallowing therapy that they desperately need. These families they have the right to practice their religion per the Constitution. The rates of religious exemption for vaccines are very low, around 1% as everyone has pointed out.
These vulnerable children, I care about them. They are the people that I treat and they will suffer the rest of their life if they don't get quality10003 special education services or even just an education. Um also these10007 same children they have poor mental functioning.10012 And um under these laws, these children would be able10018 to consent to medical care without parental10020 consent or knowledge. They certainly can't understand basic story books in10025 some cases so they definitely cannot understand what they're agreeing to at a doctor's office. I just10031 wanted to add that. Um I also oppose S 1468 an act10036 relative to school10038 immunization10039 requirements.
I wanted to mention that recently um in New York state, when they changed their10045 rules, around 26,000 kids were kicked10047 out of school10049 and the DPH was denying medical exemptions from many doctors. Now, these cases are in the10055 courts and I don't10056 want that to happen in Massachusetts. Um10058 thank you for your time. Thank you for your10062 consideration. I am personally vaccinated10063 myself.10064 My daughter is also vaccinated, um but I would10068 like to preserve religious freedom10071 um for all of the people that I support, all the people10075 that I work for, and10076 I strongly believe in this freedom. Thank you. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
10079 Thank10079 you. I will remind you that if you10083 had the chance to testify, we're asking10084 you to please sign off of the team's platform,10086 but you're welcome to come10087 back on10088 through the mass website to watch the live stream of this. Um, at this time I10092 will call Kathleen Lynch and then Gloria Lowell.10095
10100 KATHLEEN10100 LYNCH10100 -10100 RENEW10100 MASSACHUSETTS10100 COALITION10100 -10100 HB10100 227110100 -10100 HB10100 241110100 -10100 SB10100 151710100 -10100 Hello,10100 On10100 behalf of Renew Massachusetts Coalition. I am here10103 to oppose HB 2271 SB 1517 and HB 2411. We oppose these bills because they remove proper protections for religious beliefs and diminish parental authority. These bills strike out Section 15 and 15C of Chapter 7610117 of Massachusetts General Laws that provide for a religious10120 exemption from forced vaccinations/ Section 1510122 states in relevant10124 part no child whose parent or guardian states in writing that vaccination or immunization conflicts with his10130 sincere religious beliefs shall be required to present said physician's certificate, in order to you admitted to school. If a parent10137 or guardian objects to a vaccination on religious10140 grounds, the parent or10141 guardian would only need to write a letter stating that the vaccination or10145 immunization conflicts with his or her sincere religious10148 beliefs.
We should keep10149 it that10150 way. In the10151 case of HB 2411, it10153 strikes out the religious exemption entirely with10155 no recourse to a parent10157 or guardian who has10158 sincere religious beliefs opposing it. Those HB 2271 SB 1517 would replace the current simple process with the more invasive and cumbersome method for10168 obtaining a religious exemption. The parent or guardian would be required to submit10173 a10173 religious exemption10174 application to the Department10175 of10175 Public Health10176 with a receipt10177 from the applicant's primary healthcare provider. The application would request highly intrusive and personal data10182 such as race, gender, ethnicity, disability, sexual10185 orientation, gender identity, primary language occupation10188 and10189 household income. Not only is this intrusive, but it would also10195 waste precious scarce resources and puts an unnecessary roadblock to obtain a religious exemption.
The DPH has10201 no business interfering with a person's religious beliefs and whether10204 they are adequate or not. That decision is a personal decision between the responsible adult and God. Finally, parental consent must be strictly followed. HB 2271 SB 1517 would needlessly expand a10217 minor's ability10218 to consent to medical10220 interventions, including10221 vaccination by replacing a test under10224 Chapter 112, Section 12F of MA General Laws that read have come in10229 contact with with be10230 at risk of contracting a10231 disease. There10232 is always risk of contracting a disease. So this10235 provision would essentially allow medical authorities other than a parent or guardian to compel an10240 immature, ill informed10242 and impressionable minor10243 to take what is a potentially risky vaccine10246 or other medical intervention without parental consent. I ask you10250 to send HB 2271 SB 1517 and H B 2411 to10254 study or10255 vote they ought not pass. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Thank you. At this time I would welcome Gloria10268 Lowell
Gloria. You there?
Okay. Um and if you had the chance to give testimony, I am asking you10287 to please sign off of the10288 team's platform and come10289 back on to the live stream um Cara cetera10294 Kannapolis.
I'm here. Hi, yes I'm here. Can you hear me ken? Can you just10302 say your name? It's Keira satirical populists. Welcome. Thank you.
10307 KARA10307 ???10307 -10307 CONCERNED10307 CITIZEN10307 -10307 HB10307 241110307 -10307 HB10307 227110307 -10307 SB10307 151710307 -10307 Thank10307 you for allowing me to speak today. Um, I think we can all agree that10311 we are living in really10312 scary times and now more10314 than ever we have10315 to focus on data and facts. I want to emphasize accurate data. The sponsors of H 2271 H 2411 and10324 S 1517 are kind of taking the information they're presenting it in a10330 way that isn't10331 entirely inaccurate but they're not10333 telling the10334 whole story and the10335 rest of the story. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
So they're just going10337 to ask you to10338 please keep your testimony to10339 why you oppose10340 the legislation without talking about10341 that. I'm trying to and I would10344 respectfully ask for to me to continue. I10346 am specifically continue. And you can also respond to the10349 legislation that10351 a problem
??? - With school immunization records10353 when in fact there is really no10355 measurable problem. They talk about pockets of non-vaccinated students.10358 However, when10359 you look at the data, you can clearly10361 see10361 there's more to the story because within these districts there are no exemptions filed. A lot of the data that10367 was presented was missing important10368 detail and it leads one to wonder if10371 the data was shared in a way to make people believe that there is a problem when there really isn't one. Again, over10376 98% of the students in Massachusetts are vaccinated. Healthy children cannot and do not make others sick. We10383 have protocols in place in the event of an outbreak of a vaccine-preventable illness. We have10387 never had a problem10388 with these protocols in over a10390 decade.10390
Whether you agree with it or not, Article2 in10393 the Declaration of Rights, the Massachusetts Constitution defends my right to raise my children in accordance with my morally10398 formed conscience when it states that we should be10401 free to10402 worship in a10403 manner that is consistent with the dictator of one's own conscious,10405 without personal restraint, without restraint of personal liberty. You do not have to affiliate with an organized religion, as it has been said multiple times today. That is misinformation.10415 This right should not be taken away10417 because some people are10419 abusing this right. Just like we do not10421 take away public10422 benefits from10423 people because others are abusing the system. What side of10425 the history are you10426 going to fall on?
Will you be on record for10429 voting10429 to support a10430 bill that is in violation of our Massachusetts constitution? Will you vote for a bill that you might not really support? 100% of what the bill says and that will deny children their10440 right to an education, bills that will rip10443 children from their schools as it would my own son because it would prevent him potentially10447 from attending the private10448 school that ironically aligns with my religious beliefs because that bill would do that. Or will10453 you read10454 the bills? Please please read the bills. Read the Massachusetts constitution, push the narrative aside. Push, your political party aside if you have10463 to step outside of it and analyze10466 the real data, be brave, be a leader, do the right thing. Thank10470 you for your time. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Thank you. And10476 I'm gonna ask Miss Candace Edwards to please try a different mug. We've asked for10480 no signs. Um, and that one is a little10483 distracting.
Yeah. So at this10487 time I will10488 ask,
uh, we just had Gloria10494 Karen. Okay, Amanda Matthews.
Hey, I'm here. Who is this? Please? Amanda Matthews.10503 Amanda welcome,
AMANDA MATTHEWS - CONCERNED CITIZEN - HB 2411 - HB 2271 - SB 1517 - Thank you, esteemed members of the10507 Joint Committee on Public Health thank you for taking the time to listen to my testimony. My name is Amanda10512 Matthews10513 and I'm in front of you today to oppose bills H 2411, S 1517, and10516 H 2271. I'm a lifelong resident of Massachusetts, having grown up in Acton and moving just next door to Concord with my husband to raise our own three children. My10527 story begins last summer when I first felt the discrimination10530 that these bills would foster in communities like my own. At the time I was involved10534 with the PTG At my son's school, co chair of a young parents group in10537 my town10538 and co president of my daughter's preschool.
To make a10540 long story short, my family10541 was voted out of10543 our beloved preschool when our10544 director and other board10545 members changed policy around religious exemptions and decided to no10548 longer accept them. Putting it bluntly, I felt back stabbed, betrayed and shunned by the community that I had10555 grown to10556 love and one that I thought valued my two children who had attended preschool there. The feeling of community of10561 belonging to a group10562 where our children learned and thrived was ripped away from us as it will be from many other10568 families in this state if these, these destructive bills continue on their path. The10571 situation that I was in was unique10573 in that are chose10575 our school chose to discriminate, whereas schools will be required10577 or encouraged to shun10578 those with religious exemptions with these bills.
There will10581 be thousands of Massachusetts families left without viable10584 options for child10585 care special programs, preschools camps and schools.10588 These changes restrict10589 the use10590 of religious exemptions and will put targets on the backs of children who will rely on them and single them out to their peers,10598 their teachers, and the10599 community. Programs who have immunization10600 rates below hard immunity would be publicly labeled as an elevated high risk program. With a label like this parents and Children alike would be singled out discriminated against10610 and institutions would be less likely to accept those10613 with exemptions. It puts10614 pressure on schools and programs and creates uncomfortable situations for families of faith.
The bottom10619 line is this10621 our children who use an exemption are not a threat to other people. We10625 live in a first-world nation with exceptional sanitary systems and unbelievable doctors. We have conditions that are safe for the general10631 population and where people reserve10633 the right to choose. In Massachusetts, we have some of the highest immunization10636 rates in the country. Our community is safe and our families are committed to our children's10641 safety. People who have sincere religious beliefs should not be persecuted. Enacting a policy banning students with10646 religious exemptions is a choice to discriminate. All of us on this call today have one thing in common, we10653 care about our children.
No matter10654 which side of this exemption debate you are on we are all parents who are making the best choices10659 for our own families. Our10660 country was founded on the basis of religious freedom, where people could choose to practice the religion of their choosing as enshrined in our constitution. We all use our conscience10668 and our deep inner faith to guide our families who we know better than anyone else possibly could. I appreciate you taking the time to hear my testimony and hope you will consider my, SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
thank you and please do feel free to submit the rest of your testimony in writing At this time. I will go ahead and10687 call on Candace Edwards. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Hello, can you hear me? We can hear you? Can see you and hear you.
CANDICE EDWARDS - CONCERNED CITIZEN - HB 2411 - HB 2271 - SB 1517 - Thank you. I testify today as a mother battling cancer trying to guarantee my child vaccine-injured child a future. Last session we heard thousands of heartbreaking testimonies of adverse events and the10709 current system10710 failing vaccine-injured children10711 and what did did10713 the sponsors help10714 this? Sorry. And what did the10717 sponsors do to help them this session?10719 Nothing. In10720 fact, Senator Rausch's bill became more10722 burdensome by removing the other category in the10724 medical exemption section of her bill and Representative Andy10727 Vargas continues to call people like myself anti-vaxxers after being told numerous times that the term is highly discriminatory and offensive.
My son10735 cannot get a medical exemption despite suffering documented10738 adverse events to vaccinations at six months10740 of age from a mitochondrial condition10743 leaving him with10744 lifelong developmental disabilities. He also developed10746 zero antibodies from all of his vaccines. He10749 is a vaccine non-responder. His five doctors who10752 out of genuine medical concerns of his condition worsening or10757 even causing death told me he is10759 not a good candidate for further10762 vaccination but will not write him a medical10765 exemption because none of his conditions are contraindicated and they fear the repercussions of going against scientific consensus. I am immunocompromised with10772 an aggressive cancer and I've had10774 extensive conversations with our doctors in regards to the risks and precautions that I must take when it10781 comes to all bacteria, all10783 viruses and all infections.
Not just a few that the vaccines cover. And10787 I would never expect someone to get a vaccine that10790 they10790 don't want to protect me, especially the already injured. We are a God fearing family who uses10796 a religious exemption because his father out from our10798 church states in the eyes of God, it would constitute child abuse to vaccinate him further,10803 knowing what you know,10804 and that10805 is exactly how it10806 feels abuse and PTSD is real. To say the challenges that comes with a special needs10810 child is hard, is an understatement. And10812 I invite you to10813 spend a day with me10815 to see10816 what it's like because we depend on the support and services to give our children every chance10821 to be the best that they can be. And they truly10823 do not think that the devastating impacts and implications of10826 these bills have been10827 thought through.
And I have questions that I respectfully request answers to. Representative Vargas as you've10831 heard, I'm currently10832 fighting cancer and I cannot get a10834 medical exemption for my son. If your10836 bill were to pass, how do you suggest my special needs child receive an education? And does the state intend to take full responsibility for the vaccine injuries that can occur10846 because of your bill when families are forced to vaccinate their children for an education? And10851 Senator Rausch last session,10852 the bill moved10853 our committee with an amendment that would work toward10856 children getting the, SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
10857 Medford.10857 I've10857 asked everyone speaking10858 to please keep their comments to the10861 bill and not directly10862 to legislators.
EDWARDS - This session you resubmitted your bills without10864 those changes, why? If10865 only my son10866 could get the medical exemption he deserves instead of being coerced into signing a statement in exchange for education I've weighed the benefits and risks for my family. And10875 while it may be DPH's view that I am putting my child and the community10879 at10879 risk, it is10880 a generic blanket statement that does not take into account the personal situation where we are protecting my child from further harm and it is10886 an opinion that is shared by his own doctors. So why10889 Senator Rausch? Are you10890 already making impossible,
10892 SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Edwards? I'm asking you to keep your comments not to the legislators but to the legislation at hand.
Edwards? I'm asking you to10900 keep your comments not to the legislators but to10903 the legislation at hand.10905
Okay. At this time I will welcome Gina10917 Carmen stop violating her first car.10921 Me and if you've interrupted the10924 hearing, you will be10925 removed from the platform
and I just want to remind anyone who's10933 speaking. We have asked many times. The rules are that you do not comment on the specific legislators.10937 You speak10938 to the legislation. If you have questions for specific legislator, you are welcome to email them. You're welcome to10944 send them to10945 the committee. We will10947 pass them on to them as10948 long along with your contact10949 information as well, Miss10950 Carney, I'm gonna go ahead and give10953 you another 30 seconds because10954 I can't tell if it was muted because of10956 us or your time was up. My team saying time's up.10959 But I'm gonna give you another 30 seconds. Go right ahead.10961
I'm sorry. I meant to say Miss Edwards. I'm gonna give10968 you that an extra 30 seconds. Go ahead please.
Sorry, what did you say? I'm giving you an extra 30 seconds to go ahead and continue testimony.
EDWARDS - If only10978 my child could get the medical exemption he deserves instead of being coerced into signing a10983 statement in exchange for an10984 education. I've weighed the benefits and risks for our family. And while it10988 may10988 be DPH's view that I'm putting my10990 child and the community at10991 risk, it is a generic blanket statement that does not10993 take into account our personal10994 situation where we're protecting him from further harm. An opinion shared by his own doctors, Why are we making11000 an already impossible medical exemption situation even harder to obtain with these bills? I'm in11005 the biggest fight of11007 my life and never did I imagine that I would be fighting for my sons, too. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
11013 Thank11013 you, Miss Edwards, um, for your testimony. Uh11015 huh.11015 I'm now going to call Gina Carmen, please. Carmen, please.
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