2023-07-26 00:00:00 - Joint Committee on Public Health
2023-07-26 00:00:00 - Joint Committee on Public Health
(Part 1 of 4)
SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
[Part 1]
SPEAKER1 - Welcome to the hybrid public hearing of the joint committee on public health. My name is Marjorie Decker from the city of Cambridge, and I am the house cochair of the joint committee on public health. I am joined today by my senate co chair, Senator Julian Cyr from the Cape And Islands. I wanna welcome my committee members. Some are here in person, and some will be joining us by hybrid. I am joined by my vice chair Sally Carons. I wanna thank representative Ivana Howard Representative Irina DeRosa, representative Ash, representative Casner, representative Garcia, representative Vargas,
I'll invite my cochair, Senator Cyr, to recognize members of his committee.
SPEAKER2 - Good morning, Julian Cyr, senate chair, the joint committee on public health. Delided to be joined this morning by his Senator Kennedy and Senator Keenan, and I think we expect other senate members to be joining throughout the day.
SPEAKER1 - Today, we will hear testimony on 7 bills pertaining to vaccines. These are bills that deal with policy issues facing the Commonwealth. As has been the case for every hearing, we will have we will have to put a time79 limit on the amount of testimony for each81 bill. At the other hearings, we've allowed up to 30 minutes for each bill bill. And if time permits, then we circle back. In this case, we will allow up to 2 hours for each bill alternating between in person and virtual testimony, in an effort to hear some testimony on every bill. Once we have heard every bill, we will come back to the people who are not able provide testimony initially if time allows. Kindly note efforts will be made to hear all individuals and panels seeking to testify. However, it is possible that time may not permit all testimony to be be heard. We do encourage you to please submit any written testimony Whether you have testified in person and would still like to submit it or you have not had time to testify in person. We are excited that we have new technology, I want to thank our team from LIS for all of their incredible efforts. Their efforts make it possible for more people to engage and have input and reach out in the legislative process by testifying by joining us on our team's platform.
Before I'd like to remind you that if you are on the Teams app, please and you're not speaking, please keep your your mic muted. After you've had the chance to testify either virtually or in person, we ask that you either leave the teams or you leave the editor the auditorium And that is because we are trying to make159 we are expecting a large number of161 people who signed up today, and we're trying to make sure that there's room for people here. We also invite for those who are in person if we reach room capacity to please join us up at the Great Hall where we have provided over overflow space along with a live streaming of today's hearing. I'll be happy to recognize committee callings for questions after each speaker or panel should they have any.
For those of you who are attending, please be reminded that you have up to 2 minutes to speak today, and that isn't an so that we can hear everyone195 who has signed up to speak today. If you're testifying as part of199 the panel, know that the panel regardless many of you have testified to be together have no more than 4 minutes, and we are counting on panels to divide that time up amongst yourselves. If you are testifying on more than 1 bill, as always, please provide the testimony215 bills on all of those the the bill numbers on all of those This will be your 1 shot to come before us. You won't be invited back to come on the same hearing for another bill.
I also want to thank the incredible229 staff that are joined by both231 the House and the Senate staff who are here with233 us today, whose work makes it possible for us to continue doing the important work of hearing bills before the committee. And I also really wanna say a special thank you to the court officers who, as usual, are a tremendous part of making sure that democracy continues to move forward. And, again, thank you to all the interns who've also been joining our teams and and helping to move this through.
If you would like to watch this as live stream, please note that you can go to majlegislature.gov.
That is the website that is live streaming this public hearing. please be mindful of just the hearing room if we reach capacity, which we expected earlier with the sign up, but I'm not sure at the moment. We will give people advanced notice and try to remind people of how many more speakers are ahead of you when we can. And at this, I will just start with our first
speaker.
I invite Senator Rauch to please join us.
Representative Donato, you also wishing to speak? Okay.
SPEAKER3 - Yep.
SEN RAUSCH - SB 1458 - HB 2151 - Good morning, Chairs and committee members. Thank you for taking us out of turn and hearing our testimony in support of the Community Immunity Act, which we have filed this session. Previously, this Bill earned a favorable report from this committee, and the Senate passed significant portions of it, we ask once more for a swift and favorable report. Frankly, it is embarrassing that more than three years after the onset of Covid, we still have not fixed the serious problems in our infectious disease prevention laws. The results of our Swiss cheese statutes are overwhelmingly transparent in the data and the lack thereof, both display it on these posters and in the packets in front of you. This shows that our data set is only 64% complete, all of these schools that were asked to report have not done so. You can also see the abysmal rates in kindergarten, which gets worse when you start looking at the older grades as well. This is what happens when you plot it on a map, these maps are also included in your packets. This is just childcare, less than half of which actually reported data in the last school year. This390 is K to 12 which by the way has gotten worse over the last several years.
The bigger the dot, the worse the problem. All of the X's indicates schools that did not report any data whatsoever to Department of Public Health in the last academic year. This is what happens when we overlay them. Childcare and K to 12, you can see the clusters throughout the entirety of our Commonwealth. This wholesale set of problems will not be remedied by making tweaks or modifications or even revoking an exemption, this wholesale set of problems needs the wholesale set of solutions provided in the community immunity act. In short, the Bill supports student health improves public health and engages communities through education and outreach. It would centralized exemption management, plug up the gaping holes in our datasets and inform parents and communities of elevated risk of infectious disease. The Bill does not strike the religious exemption or permit a five year old to456 waltz into a pharmacy and get a vaccine but it would standardized exemptions, so school personnel aren't handed as462 documentation, napkins smeared with peanut butter bearing the words sincerely held belief. As you hear gross distortions of fact, medical science, and law today, I ask you to please remember the reasonable and largely silent super majority out there, especially after the last three years, we owe it to them to pass the Community Immunity Act. Thank you very much.
REP DONATO - SB 1458 - HB 2151 - Thank you, Madam Chair, and Senator. Solution, this Bill supports student health by creating consistent immunization exemption policy and protocols statewide for K to 12 schools, preschools, childcare, and summer camps. It involves public health through comprehensive data collection and identifying areas of vaccination rates, provides information, pathways parents, caregivers, and community members about problematic for immunization rates, and vaccine safety efficiency and access. I think that as the Senator pointed out, the information that is being provided throughout the Commonwealth by those who are opposed to this Bill saying it does not provide for medical or religious exemption, it is here in this, Bill, and we both support that opportunity to do so, and thank you for the opportunity to speak. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Thank you. At this time, I would ask representative Soder to join us.
SPEAKER4 - Are we on set?
SPEAKER1 - A question? I apologize. Oh.
SPEAKER5 - Sorry.
SEN ROBYN KENNEDY - Thank you, Madam Chair. I do just have a quick follow-up to my colleagues on this and Senator Rausch, thank you. I can see, but I can't quite read some of the data points, and I'm576 wondering if you could walk through bit more information,578 a little bit more of the data components that you presented here and provide a little bit more detail on what the Bill will do. Thank you.
RAUSCH - Okay, we'll start back at the beginning just to be able to provide the context. Again, this is provided in the packets that were before you in a little more detail. But DPH every year puts out a voluntary survey to every school, including child care, K to 12 and colleges throughout the Commonwealth. It's voluntary because of the flaws in our statutes, they do not have the authority to require reporting and so they ask for voluntary participation in the survey. In the last school year, right, the school year that just concluded last month, all of these schools in orange, various shades of orange, so you can see the differentiation, did not report any data whatsoever to DPH, that's 36% of all the schools in the Commonwealth, more than a third. If you look just at childcare, less than half of the child cares in the Commonwealth actually reported any information on vaccines or immunization exemptions to DPH in the entirety of last year. So when we look at the the detail as to what our vaccination rate what our exemption rates are, we're really looking just in the 64%, right? Because we don't even have data on these 36%. So within these reporting schools, you can see it gets pretty stark, and again, this is in your packets by the numbers pages for kids that are at risk and pretty significant system failures, all of which this Bill would address.
152 kindergartens last year lacked protection herd immunity against the spread of measles, that's 18% of kindergartens throughout the state, Again, that's just within the 64% that we've got. That percentage 18% jumps to 45% college data. 111 lacked protection against pertussis, whooping cough, that's 13% of kindergartens. That number jumps to 32% in 7th grade and 42% in college. We still have more than a dozen kindergartens and more than a dozen childcare centers, again, just within the 64% that have lost herd immunity against polio. Then you turn to the system failures; 217 Kindergartens, that's 12%, and in fact, it's more than 10% across the board have at least 5% or more and some significantly more of their students who are missing vaccines and also missing exemptions on file despite the rule that we are supposed to either be vaccinated or have an exemption on file. This is just more than 5% and we've got a significant portion of schools as well that have no vaccination records for students whatsoever, that's, again, just within the 64% that actually reported. When you take them and plot them on a map, and I'll just skip ahead to the last I know time is tight today, to the last map, this is all of that data plotted geographically, and you can see the clusters all around the state, and, again, the bigger the dot, the less vaccination there is. So this is Springfield and the surrounding areas. Western Mass. Eastern mass is so densely X out and dotted you can't even see through it. These are infrastructure problems that need to be fixed with infrastructure solutions, and that is what this Bill does; centralizes all of the components within public health experts and makes our systems work better, lightening the already overburdened load on our child care providers and school staff. Thank you.
SEN KEENAN - You mentioned the child care and kindergarten centers that may not have herd immunity as it relates to polio. I believe there are830 provisions in place and could you be able to832 clarify them as to what would happen if DPH becomes aware that one of these programs does not meet the herd immunity level in terms of notification or process?
RAUSCH - Right now, nothing happens, there's no system of providing any sort of information to parents, any sort of support totally for our Department of Public Health and Public Health experts to work with communities that have dropped below herd immunity. There isn't even any notification at all to parents and caregivers who might be in those programs and not even know it. But that is also something that this Bill would address as well, first of all, plot the holes in our datasets so we actually know where the risks are and we would drastically reduce, if not eliminate the number of X's on these maps and then provide support for coordination between the Department of Public Health and local leaders and folks within those communities, right? That's the point of the Bill to provide information about the elevated risk and also to provide information about vaccine safety, efficacy, and accessibility. That accessibility, I think, is a really important part, right? We have a vaccine trust fund in Massachusetts that will provide vaccines for free and that information is really salient and would be much more readily provided as opposed to not provided at all, which is where we are now through the passage of this Bill.
KEENAN - So parents would be notified, for instance, that they're in an elevated risk situation and then they can handle that information as they deem necessary?
RAUSCH - Correct. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Right. Right.
SPEAKER6 - Thank you.
SPEAKER1 - So people who are trying to speak today, so If we can just limit our comments to our colleagues, that would be helpful. At this point, welcome representative Soder to join us.
SPEAKER9 - Thank you, Chair, Sarah, and Chair Decker. The members of the committee for a live
SPEAKER1 - --
SPEAKER9 - There we go.
REP SOTER - HB 582 - Thank you, Chair Decker, Chair Decker and the members of the committee for allowing me to testify on behalf of H 582. We'll be providing more detailed information to the committee so that I don't981 have to burden you with all that information right now publicly here this morning. When I wrote this legislation, no one knew the situation that the country would shut down due to a worldwide pandemic. The pandemic, however, has brought this important issue to the forefront, vaccine exemption policy. No vaccine is a 100% effective. We were told that the Covid vaccine would prevent infection, and that was not true. This tells us that we need to rely more and more on the trust of our medical doctors and the health care system to guide us through challenges. We have learned that information and research on viruses are a fluid information cycle as we learn more about the viruses as they progress. I wrote HB 582 because medical professionals should not have to walk on eggshells and turn patients to religious houses to seek exemptions for vaccine requirements just to save face and prevent persecution from their employers.
Alternatively, students should not be subjected to scrutiny and face blacklisted due to false pretenses and social pressures. To curtail the secondary implications of vaccine mandates, we must trust our medical professionals and recognize the need for appropriate medical exemptions. In the absence of Bill 582, we further strain our already burdened health care system and deprive many1076 students of the education they deserve. By protecting the implementation of medical exemptions for vaccines, this Bill would ensure that our vulnerable children do not lose access to public school education. This is1090 especially important to children with special needs, those complex medical and neurological circumstances may not be addressed by currently available vaccine safety data and whose exclusion from school could be damaging at an individual and community level. Choosing whether to receive a vaccine is a right that every American has, and it is one that should be made in partnership with one's health care provider without damaging repercussions to either party involved. Medical professionals are trained to understand when a patient may be at risk for adverse outcomes due to vaccinations. If a medical professional deemed it necessary for student to be exempt from receiving a vaccine, this Bill would protect both the judgment of the physician, but also the health of the student question. Trust in medical professionals critical for vaccine confidence, physicians should not be subjected to scrutiny face being blacklisted by the medical community and subject to disciplinary action.
SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
I'll stop there to abide by the 2 minutes. Minas, you.
SPEAKER1 - Thank thank thank you very much, representative. And please do feel free to submit your and I'll be in writing to the community. I would ask people to refrain from applause so that we can continue moving this along.
SPEAKER9 - And, Mara, chair, and do it. We'll we'll answer any questions. Yeah.
SPEAKER1 - Thank you. Are there any questions from colleagues?
SPEAKER2 - Yes. First, I wanna recognize Senator Payano who's joined us virtually.
SEN CYR - I just want to confirm what you said, I believe you said we were told, 'the Covid vaccine would provide protection and that's not true. Is that what you said? So Yes or no?
SOTER - Mr. Chairman, yes, the president of the United States, when they rolled out that vaccine said to us that it would prevent us from getting Covid vaccine and that changed dramatically when we were finding out that it wasn't, and people were still getting Covid after they got the vaccine. So, yes, Mr. Chairman, I do say that.
CYR - Alright. I just wanted to clarify that. I think today's hearing is about the the Bills that are before us today are about a number of provisions related to vaccine requirements or exemptions or vaccines or data collection related to vaccine. However, I think the statement that I believe you're referring to the prior president?
SOTER - No, I'm referring to this President, Mr. Chair.
CYR - I think that it is very clear of the efficacy broadly of the Covid-19 vaccine in preventing severity of Covid-19 and preventing death and the data is very clear on that. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
I'm gonna ask anyone from the public. Please refrain from yelling out in the hearing. You will have an opportunity to come up here and speak. If you yell and I do this, then that's less time we have for other people to actually be able to speak today. Thank you. Continue, senator.
CYR - I just wanted to clarify that comment because I think there's a real conversation, we're receiving a lot of feedback today you know, on Bills related to various exemptions, including your Bill but I think it's really important that we clarify that the record on Covid-19 vaccination, as it relates to a number of vaccinations has broad efficacy. The question today before the committee are related to requirements, exemptions, etcetera but I just wanted to clarify that for the record.
SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
I don't wanna take up too much more time because we do have a lot of people we're hiring from today. to share with you so
SOTER - If I may, Madam Chair, I just want to1290 say1290 that in my Bill, what it does is it provides a way to insulate the conversations that doctors have with their patients, and we're focusing more on the medical field because I sat on this committee in 2019. The1305 thing I heard over and over again from doctors was that it's very tough for them to make medical exemptions, this Bill protects them and be able to have that conversation with their patients to do that, whether it's a Covid vaccine or whatever the vaccine is at that point, that's what this Bill does. This Bill doesn't do anything else, but insulate that and protect that right between a patient and their doctor. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Thank
SPEAKER1 - you. At this time thank you representative.
SPEAKER7 - At this time,
SPEAKER11 - I would
SPEAKER1 - welcome on representative Andy
Vargas. I'm
gonna
ask you 1 more time. If you make comments, that when you are not up here, and you were warned more than once, you will be asked to go sit in the overflow room. Thank you. This is a room that we're gonna show a lot of respects to each other regardless of the opinions that we hold. Thank you.
REP VARGAS - HB 604 - SB 1391 - Thank you, Madam Chair, I'll be brief in the interest of time. I'm here to testify on my Bill, H 604, an act relative to routine childhood immunizations and its Senate counterpart. I'll just get right to it; to be clear, this Bill would not1372 require the Covid vaccine, it deals exclusively with the DPH schedule for schools. This Bill would improve immunization data collected by the Department of Health and this Bill is very similar, if not identical to the Bill that this committee reported out favorably, thanks to the great work of the Chairs of this committee and staff. A couple of quick points. Number one, there's been a rapid rise in the use of religious exemption since the 1980s, a 500% increase. All the data that shows religious affiliation has shown a downward trend of a religious affiliation, so you could say the spirit of the law is being violated. I have sat with parents who have used the religious exemption and can say that the majority of them are good hearted people who just want what's best for their kids, they have sincere fears and their experiences are sometimes dismissed. Unfortunately, figuring out what's best for your kids is increasingly difficult in the era of pseudoscience, digital misinformation campaigns, and people who profit from the anti vaccine movement.
Number two, evidence from other states shows that removing religious exemptions increases vaccination rates without impacting school attendance. You will hear that this Bill will result in children being excluded from school.1436 The data from California has shown that1438 the removal of religious exemptions resulted in high vaccination rates without increasing homeschooling rates. This shows that in other states, the Bill has its intended effect. Number three, despite religious exemptions being so high, no major world religion objects to the use of vaccinations. As a Catholic myself, even the Vatican and the National Catholic Biolithic Center says, that Catholics have a moral obligation to protect the life and health of their children and those around them. Number four, you will likely hear claims today that this Bill is unconstitutional, this is false. The supreme court of the United States1469 has already decided and reaffirmed that mandatory vaccination laws are constitutional. Rulings from Jacobson Versus Massachusetts, Prince versus Massachusetts, Phillips versus the city of New York in 2015, Brown V Smith in 2018 have all determined constitutionality. Our neighboring states have removed the religious exemption, I hope we can here in Massachusetts as well. In the interest of time, I'll take questions from the committee so that we can hear from more folks here. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Thank you, representative. At this time, I would like to welcome representative Sally Karen to join us. Representative
SPEAKER7 - to
REP KERANS - That's fine, Madam Chair. I just wanted to point out that I filed this Bill to allow for funeral directors and workers to be treated as health care workers for the purposes of vaccination. Thank you. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Thank you. Okay. Now we are going to get to the public part of the public hearing, and I'm going to welcome on our first 1. It is h 2207, an act ensuring the fair and appropriate distribution of vaccines during a public1541 health emergency. At this time, I believe by way of teams, We welcome, Michael Hugo.
Michael, are you with us?
SPEAKER14 - Yes. I am. I'm Okay.
SPEAKER1 - You have 2 minutes.
MICHAEL HUGO - MAHB - HB 2207 - Thank you very much, Senators and Representatives. We will be submitting in writing in order to save time today from your over tight schedule but we stand in support of the Community Immunity Act, and we will be submitting in writing. Thank you. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Okay.
SPEAKER1 - We welcome your written testimony. Thank you for joining us.
This time, I would we're gonna go to house 4, Senate 1391, enact relative to routine childhood immunizations, enact relative to vaccines and preventing1607 future disease outbreaks.
At this time, I'm going to be calling in order. Jana Carrette's, Kim Richards, and then Heather Longahan. Jana corrects, are you with us by way of teams?
SPEAKER15 - I am. Can you hear me?
SPEAKER1 - Yes. I can. Welcome.
JANNA CORETZ - CONCERNED CITIZEN - HB 604 - SB 1391 - Thank you. My name is Janna Cortez, and I'm a psychologist and a mother to a child with complex medical issues, which includes a heart transplant among other things. She's immune suppressed and cannot have live vaccines as they will kill her. We rely on the community for herd immunity to keep her safe. I'm testifying in favor of this Bill. To be honest, the fact that we are still talking about this is embarrassing. My family has been testifying in favor of the Bill for over four years beginning when my daughter was an infant on her fourth month of life support at Children's Hospital. If1657 you weren't a believer in science and history since then, Covid should have taught us all what happens when we live in a world without vaccines, which is that people die. For my family, having someone out of vaccines for so called religious reasons is no different than them choosing to be above the law, drive drunk, and kill someone, the effect is the same for us. If you live in a society, you have to follow rules. If there are loopholes for this rule, there can be loopholes for other rules, and then more people will die. If the legislators choose to continue to ignore this issue, do nothing, your inaction is killing people. People who vote for you and live in your town, you're showing your community you don't care about young children, the medically complex community. does include people like your own family suffering from things like cancer and the elderly. I personally wouldn't vote for someone who disregarded their community in such a way. I do hope that you make the right choice and pass this Bill. Thank you. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Thank you.
Tim, Richard, are you here? Welcome.
SPEAKER16 - Thank you to the chairs and committee members for this opportunity to testify.
KIM RICHARDS - CONCERNED CITIZEN - HB 582 - My name is Kim Richards, and I'm a resident of Massachusetts. I'm testifying against the majority of the Bills today and in favor of H 582. I'm here as a parent speaking to you today for my child, you may have preconceived notions about me that I'm someone against vaccines or science, this is not the case. My son reacted to a vaccine, he developed Tourette's like ticks, he constantly blinked both his eyes interfering with learning, he also began thrusting his tongue constantly. He thrusted his tongue over his teeth so many times, creating massive cuts in his tongue that bled continuously. We took him to several doctors and hospitals, and no one had any answers for us. Fortunately after about a year the tick subsided, we were not able to obtain a medical exemption for our son. I turned to my religion and prayed. Judaism is based in values and duties to care for others including children, these traditions hold that each person is created and the image of God is unique and valuable and must be cared for when in need. Judaism specifies concepts and duties related specifically to the protection and care of children. Religion guides us, it does not make decisions for us. My son is very happy at a school and well adjusted, it would absolutely destroy him if he were no longer allowed to receive an education. We have already experienced the lack of education for children during Covid, it would be heartbreaking for my son and so many others to, again, regress as a result of not having equal access to education. He deserves equal access, it is not his fault he reacted to a vaccine. We care for elderly parents here in Massachusetts, the thought of having to relocate my disabled mother is overwhelming. Our financial stability would be compromised, my husband and I have small businesses here in manufacturing and engineering, this would affect our employees, they would be out of work and we would have to relocate to a different state. If you are on the opposite side of this issue, please know, I was just like you. I took my son to his pediatrician according to the schedule to have him vaccinated, I never thought he'd be fighting for his right to an education or testifying at the state house, but here I am. Thank you for your consideration. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Thank you. At this time, I welcome Heather and Lineaghan.
Heather, are you with us on teams?
Welcome, Heather. You have 2 minutes.
Heather, are you able to unmute?
Okay. We're gonna move on, and at the end, we will try to come back to Heather.
This time, the panel I've panel 1 Chloe Schwartz and North Saunders. You have a 4 minute panel, and it's up to you to divide the time. Welcome.
CHLOE SCHWARTZ - MARCH OF DIMES - HB 604 - SB 1391 - Thank you so much for having us. My name is Chloe Schwartz, I am the Massachusetts director of maternal and infant health for March of Dimes here in Massachusetts, and also a lifelong state resident. I'm pleased to represent March of Dimes in support of House Bill 604 and Senate Bill 1391. Vaccines are a highly effective means of preventing infectious diseases, one of the greatest public health achievements of this 20th century. Federal and professional guidelines recommend childhood and adolescent immunizations to prevent a wide range of viral and bacterial infections whose consequences can include lifelong disability or even death. Polio once called infantile paralysis used to strike thousands of children in the US each year, polio was eradicated in the US in 1979 because of the landmark National vaccination program, the funding of which was the very first mission of March of Dimes. Exemptions to vaccines put children at risk from preventable diseases. when families refuse or delay vaccines for their children without a medical basis, they increase the risk of disease in their community, especially to those who cannot be vaccinated, including newborns and immunocompromised individuals. High vaccination rates protect those who cannot medically be vaccinated and stop outbreaks from becoming epidemic, but unfortunately, recent data from the CDC indicates an increase in nonmedical exemptions. Before vaccines, thousands of children died from these diseases, and those same germs still exist today but because children are protected by vaccines, we've rarely seen these diseases up until now. The US saw more than 1200 measles1980 cases in 2019 across 31 States, including Massachusetts. Last year, an unvaccinated man was diagnosed with polio in New York and became paralyzed from the disease. Kindergartens across the Commonwealth from Great Barrington, Walpole, New Bedford to East Boston have nearly half or more than half of their students missing critical vaccinations, outbreaks in these communities and more are not a matter of if, but when. House Bill 604 and Senate Bill 1391 maintain the legislative language that passed favorably out of this joint committee during the 2022 session, and myself and March of Dimes support these bills and urge legislators of the public health committee to vote in favor of it. Thank you.
NORTHE SAUNDERS - SAFE COMMUNITIES COALITION AND ACTION FUND - HB 604 - SB 1391 - Senator Cyr, Representative Decker and honorable members of the the joint committee on public health. My name is Northe Saunders, I'm the executive director of the safe community's coalition. We are a nonprofit organization that supports pro vaccine legislation. We have state Chapters all across the country, including Massachusetts families for vaccines. This organization is here to support H 604 and S 1391 to remove the religious exemption. This common sense legislation closes a loophole that puts schools at risk from vaccine preventable diseases like polio, measles, and whooping cough. Diseases that if left unchecked, can run rampant in existing under vaccinated communities causing death and permanent disability. These diseases have all but been erased from our collective experience even chicken pox, which I suffered from as a2063 child, is a memory now, all thanks2065 to life saving vaccines. This legislation would catch Massachusetts up with neighboring states, including Connecticut, New York, and Maine, all of which had passed similar legislation in recent years. In Maine where the legislation was challenged at the ballot box, 72.8% of voters supported strong vaccine laws and the removal of exemptions. As a result, the exemption rate dropped from a high of 6.2% in 2018 to just 0.8% this past school year, that's a dramatic improvement. I'm a vaccine advocate because I2098 have a young family with three children, I believe,2100 in science. Our schools are safer from preventable disease when we close loopholes like the religious exemption. Parents shouldn't have to worry about an outbreak of measles, whooping cough or chicken pox shutting down their school. Parents have to miss work when kids have to be kept home, the knock on effect of a vaccine preventable disease outbreak can cause hundreds of thousands if not millions of dollars. Without strong vaccine laws, not only do our kids get sick, but our economy suffers.2126 On behalf of Massachusetts families for vaccines, the millions of Massachusetts parents who already immunized their kids, and they can't be here today and the pro vaccine majority of the state, I ask for your support of H SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
604 and S 1391.
Thank you. Any questions? No. At this time, I am thank you for coming. I wanna welcome Sam Whiting, who has joined us by Teams. Are you there, Sam?
SPEAKER19 - I am. Can you hear me?
SPEAKER1 - Yes. We can hear you. Welcome. Great.
SAM WHITING - MASSACHUSETTS FAMILY INSTITUTE - HB 604 - SB 1391 - HB 2151 - SB 1458 - Members of the committee, my name is Sam Whiting, and I'm an Attorney with Massachusetts Family Institute, a nonprofit organization dedicated to strengthening the family in Massachusetts. I speak in opposition to Bill's HB 604, SB 1391, HB 2151, and SB 1458. People of good faith have a wide range of differing opinions on childhood vaccines, the one thing everyone should agree on2182 is that parental rights should be honored and religious2184 beliefs should be respected. These Bills are an attack on religious liberty. They would either eliminate the religious exemption to school vaccine mandates or weaken it, forcing families to violate their sincere religious belief in order to send their kids to school. This is both unjust and unnecessary and may actually be unconstitutional. First circuit recently held in Low versus mills that allowing medical exemptions to vaccine mandates without allowing religious exemptions could violate the first amendment guarantees to the freedom of religion. This is a developing area of law and will result in costly litigation if these Bills are passed. The Bills are also an attack on parental rights, the wording changes may be subtle, but by allowing kids to consent to preventative treatments for diseases dangerous to the public health, HB 2151, and SB 1458 would enable children of any age to get vaccinated without parental knowledge or consent. If you don't believe me, please ask your own legal counsel what Sections 6 and 7 of these Bills would do. A child can't even take a time out at school without a signed permission slip but these Bills would allow kids to get vaccines through a school clinic without their parents even knowing about it. The solution that these Bills offer to vaccine problems in Massachusetts would trample on the parental rights and religious liberty of families across the Commonwealth. We need to find a better solution, I urge you to reject these Bills. Thank you. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Thank you. This time, I'm gonna call Ami Amara Singhham, and then I'm going to ask Kathleen Howard, And the next panel will be Mary Beth Miodo and Colin Killick to all be ready to speak. Welcome, Omid.
SPEAKER20 - Morning. Chair decker, chair steer.
SPEAKER1 - Tell me. I'm sorry. have you signed up as a panel.
SPEAKER20 - Oh. I think you're next.
SPEAKER21 - Oh, I'm sorry. I I misheard you. I I'm following the next 1.
SPEAKER1 - No. I have Omy.
Yeah. What what oh, sorry.
SPEAKER21 - I'm sorry. I misread you.
SPEAKER1 - Go ahead, Omidy.
OAMI AMARASINGHAM - MASSACHUSETTS PUBLIC HEALTH ASSOCIATION - HB 604 - SB 1391 - Thank you. Good morning, Chair Decker, Chair Cyr, members of the Public Health Committee. My name is Oami Amarasinghham, and I'm the Deputy Director of the Massachusetts Public Health Association. I'm here today in support of H 604 and S 1391 as well as the Community Immunity Act. I will highlight three quick points in my testimony today. First, vaccines are one of the greatest achievements of biomedical science and public health with strategic vaccination campaigns having virtually eliminated diseases that previously were common in the United States, including diphtheria, tetanus, polio, smallpox, measles, mumps, and rubella and the data is compelling. The vaccination of children born in any given year prevents approximately 42,000 deaths and 20 million cases of disease for that cohort of children. Vaccination protects individual children from deadly diseases, and what's more, it largely protects the population as a whole. Second, as you've already heard today, we are sliding backwards. In 2019, the World Health Organization named vaccine hesitancy as one of the top 10 threats to public health. During the pandemic, in addition to public health becoming incredibly politicized, as we've already heard, routine childhood immunizations have been disrupted globally leading to increased disease outbreak and death. Finally, religious exemptions threaten herd immunity which is necessary to protect vulnerable children who cannot receive vaccinations for medical reasons because they may be undergoing chemotherapy, have an immunodeficiency condition or vaccine related allergy, such children rely on high levels of vaccination in the population to keep them safe. In growing recognition, that religious exemptions childhood immunization undermined public health, several other states have recently removed religious exemptions from their books, and we hope that Massachusetts will join those states. I will submit my testimony in writing, a longer piece to the committee. In summary, MPHA urges you to prevent the continued backward slide in public health and vote favorably on H 604 and S 1391. Thank you. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Thank you.
SPEAKER1 - At this time, I welcome by way of teams Kathleen Howarth.
And then you can be ready, Marybeth, and Colin. Kathleen?
SPEAKER22 - Yes. I'm here. Well
Hi.
KATHLEEN HOWARTH - CONCERNED CITIZEN - HB 604 - SB 1391 - HB 582 - My name is Kathleen Howarth, and I'm here to vehemently oppose all the Bills being heard today except for Representative Soter's Bill to preserve the medical exemptions. HB 604, we are going on year five putting energy into time to kick children out of school with absolutely no proof that there are any threat to anyone or have spread any of the diseases that the vaccines that are required for or any people that are immunocompromised. Vargas mentioned a 500% increase in religious exemptions, this is because the vaccine schedule has increased well over 500%. There have been over 20 doses added since the manufacturers are giving blanket immunity in 1988 because of the amount of vaccine injuries that were occurring. Our ancestors didn't cross the ocean and fight for religious freedom in this country only to be told our sincerely held religious beliefs protected by the oldest constitution in this country do not align with any major world religion. They do not have to, that is not what our constitution says. I do remind you that we just celebrated the 4th of July. Removing the religious exemption will displace my kids from school, remove them from all their sports, creating them serious mental health problems, that is a problem that we have in this country. Mental illness and mental health issues amongst kids especially since what we just went through with Covid. A lot of these kids were confined to their homes, lost a lot of things that they got in school, lost a lot of their programs for the time being, we're still cleaning up from that mess. I do remind you also that Mississippi just gave back their religious exemption, so I know it was talked about that we needed to align with our neighboring states. There's four states now that do not have religious exemption, four out of 50. So that would actually be bringing us in the wrong direction to remove the religious exemption. Thank you. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Thank you. At this time, before our next panel called up, I've just been told that
Senator Kennedy is going to join us by teams
The neuro Kennedy, are you there?
Okay. Senator Kennedy, we will yep.
We'll come Center of Kennedy. At this time, we'll go to our panel, Mary Beth Miodo, and Colin Killuk.
Thank you.
SPEAKER21 - I'm Jared. Apologies for the confusion earlier. I have a speech processing disorder. Jared
COLIN KILLICK - DISABILITY POLICY CONSORTIUM - HB 604 - SB 1391 - Chair Decker, Chair Cyr and members of the community. Thank you so much for this opportunity to testify. As executive director of disability policy consortium, Massachusetts' largest statewide disability rights advocacy and research organization, I'm here to express our full throated support for H 604, an act relative to routine childhood immunizations. The primary issue being debated here is religious exemptions, and certainly religious freedom is one of our nation's most fundamental rights. When it comes to religious concerns in school settings, there are two divergent approaches. If a parent's religion means they don't want their child getting comprehensive sex Ed, there's the approach that says a parent can pull their child from that class, and the approach that says they can prevent every child from getting sex Ed. With library book says the approach says that the parent can ask for their child not to access a specific book, and the approach says that no child to be able to read that book.
When it comes to vaccines, there is the approach that says a parent should be able to place their child in an alternate setting, and the approach that says that no child, especially those who are disabled and immunocompromised should have access to a safe classroom. Make no mistake about whom these exemptions harm. There are an estimated 180,000 immunocompromised people in this state including thousands of immunocompromised children and tens of thousands of immunocompromised parents with conditions ranging from HIV to lupus to cystic fibrosis and leukemia. The Covid pandemic has absolutely ripped through our community, and we have made up the majority of the 21,000 Covid deaths in our state. It's created a deep and2698 lasting isolation, which has particularly harm for children. If2702 we want that isolation to ever end, we owe it to those people to create safe environments. Immune compromised children and immune compromised parents rely on being protected by the community around them. We were already isolated by inaccessibility and ableism, stacking an unnecessary risk of illness and death on top of that is profoundly unequal. Imaging being a parent and having to run the risk every day that sending your child to school will put their life or yours at risk. You cannot please everyone here, you have to make a choice. You can choose the side with parents who incorrectly believe that vaccines will harm their children with parents of disabled and immunocompromised children who correctly believe that exposure to diseases like measles and Covid will threaten their child's lives. On behalf of a disability community, we2746 hope you'll make the right choice.
MARY BETH MIOTTO - MASSACHUSETTS CHAPTER OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY OF PEDIATRICS - HB 604 - SB 1391 - Thank you. My name is Mary Beth Miotto, live in Northborough, and I'm a pediatrician at the Mattapan Community Health Center. I'm speaking as the President of the Massachusetts Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics, as well as the Massachusetts Medical Society, where I co2764 chair the Committee on Student Health and Sports Medicine. The Massachusetts AAP, the Mass Medical Society, and the American Academy of Pediatrics support eliminating non medical school vaccine exemptions as proposed in H 604, and S 1391. I'm the youngest of five kids of a public school teacher. My mom started teaching when I started kindergarten, and ended the day I graduated from medical school, and you can figure out if the money had part in that to do it but we really together 53 years or so, the two of us have been supporting healthy schools. From the 1970s on, vaccines helped my mom worry less about her students becoming ill and missing school. In 1975, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act allowed youth with disabilities in complex medical conditions to attend school too. If the pandemic taught us anything, it's that we need to2815 move heaven and earth to keep children in school. We have over 50 years of evidence that timely and widespread immunization keeps school children healthy. Nonmedical vaccine exemptions put schools at risk, and also medical exemptions that are not standardized by CDC are also questionable. Massachusetts leads the US in statewide immunization rates but immunization rates are like real estate, they're totally local. If a student has adequate vaccination rates, but a neighboring school has low coverage, just one student with measles can start a community outbreak like in New York or Ohio. These infections send healthy children home from school for a few weeks, sometimes to the hospital, and spread to infants. Thank you. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
You can submit the rest of it and rate testimony. Do you have a question2863 center, sir?
SPEAKER2 - I do, Chodeka.
CYR - Doctor Miotto, thank you for so much for your testimony and and also all your good work in community health centers? Can you talk to us whether or not you know, are doctors receiving requests for expansion around medical exemption, is that being heard? Is that something you or your colleagues and the Academy of Pediatrics are hearing from families and from patients. Is that a request that you or colleagues hear?
MIOTTO - In general, what we hear is questions about the safety2898 of vaccines, and honestly, that's the best news to my ears because then we can talk about it and what we know in the science and the process. We tend to hear about people who are fearful, and I'll be honest from my experience and other physicians, we don't really get the question about can we get a non-medical exemption and that is generally in the board certified pediatrician community. We do get the questions again, sometimes we get somebody who says I don't want to talk about vaccines, I don't believe in vaccines, and to be honest, that's a little bit more common or the families in the majority2936 who ask some questions to make sure they understand, and then they go ahead and get the vaccines. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Thank you. At this time, on Teams, I wanna welcome representative Alison Sullivan, welcome representative Good morning, and I do know that you do all you guys have a a large group of people that wanna speak, so I will be very, brief, and I apologize. I intended to be there today. I'm expecting my first baby, and I am, I think, ahead of delivery schedule. So waiting the patiently awaiting the arrival.
REP SULLIVAN - HB 582 - So I did want to come on record and state some of my opposition on some of the Bills that are before you today.2979 I until, I think, getting pregnant, not fully understanding what parents have to go through and really cipher through a long list of vaccines and vaccine schedules, I just wanted to come on and really emphasize continuing allowing the exemptions that are in place, whether it be a medical exemption or religious exemption, and or also parental opinions as well. I know there's some concerns from my constituents, regarding the removal of parental rights when it comes to children and vaccine schedules. So I'm going to yield the rest of my time but I did want to3018 come3018 before you, and I thank, Madam Chair and Mr. Chair on your day today. Good luck, and thank you so much. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Thank you, representative. It's good to see you and and hang in there. We're very excited for you.
SPEAKER24 - There'll be a baby in the chamber soon. Great.
SPEAKER1 - Take care. At this time, I'm gonna call and let you know the next several speakers who will be coming up. The first speaker who will join us by teams is Mari Cartagenaova, Then I will welcome a panel in person, Doctor. Bacari and Doctor Moriarty, then it will be Samantha Lupo, and then another panel of Matt Moda and Gregory Sheratollah. So at this time, I welcome. Mari, are you here on teams?
Okay. 1 more time. We'll3080 welcome Mari Cartagenaova.
Okay. We will if there's time permitting, we will try to come back3088 to you. And the in person panel that I wanna welcome now is Doctor Bukari and Doctor Mori. followed by Sam Samantha Lupo, Matt Moda, Gregory Charatola, and then Hannah King and Beth Hur. You will all be on on deck soon.
SPEAKER25 - Am I on? Yes. Okay.
RICHARD MORIARTY - UMASS CHAN MEDICAL SCHOOL - HB 604 - SB 1391 - My name is Richard Moriarty, I've practiced pediatrics and pediatric infectious disease for 45 years, the last 20 were at UMass Medical3138 School. I've seen and experienced many of the vaccine preventable diseases. I was lucky to make it through the ones I got, many people were not. A kindergarten classmate of mine was paralyzed by polio, I've seen children severely injured by measles, pertussis and congenital rubella. Thanks to vaccines, these diseases are rare where immunization rates are high. Please support H 604. 88% of Massachusetts kindergarten exemptions are religious yet there is no religion that preaches against vaccines. A religious exemption is just a proxy for a personal belief exemption. Ending the exemption would quickly improve our immunization rates. Under immunized communities around our state are a setup for expensive outbreaks like3188 measles and pertussis. This3190 Bill would cost nothing and would protect more children. Please support S 1391, current law does not not require schools to report immunization rates. Last year, 37% of kindergarten either didn't report their rates or the rates couldn't be disclosed because of small class size, parents can't fully know from this data whether they're sending their kids who are immunocompromised to a safe school, the department of Health can't know what to do as far as how many people in communities are susceptible to diseases. Annual school immunization data should be required for all schools. Unimmunized kids must be excluded from school if there's a disease outbreak, exclusions can last two to3238 three weeks or longer. Kids learn best when they're in school, not at home missing with parents missing work. vaccines keep kids healthy. Please support H 604 and S 1391.
SAMARA BUKHARI - AMERICAN COLLEGE OF PHYSICIANS - HB 604 - SB 1391 - Respected Chairs and members of the committee, thank you so much for giving me this opportunity to testify. I'm doctor Samara Bukhari, I'm here on the behalf of ACP, American College of Physician, the organization who represent more than 4000 mental medicine physicians and also the worldwide largest medical specialty. First of all, I want to thank you the committee for passing H 2411 last session and now we are here to discuss about or present Bill 604, which actually says the removal of nonmedical vaccination exemption for children entering Massachusetts Schools. Basically, coming from Turban Country, Pakistan, I have seen those preventable diseases very closely. We don't have resources to vaccinate our children where parents are begging for vaccinations and seeing and witnessing here in United States where we have accesses, we have resources, we have all the opportunities to vaccinate our children, I'm still seeing those preventable cases day by day. We still have measles cases in 2019, 2020, we had polio cases recently in New York. Personally, if I believe that, that I support religious freedom, I support access to education, but to the best of my knowledge, any practicing religion and faith in Massachusetts has no against direction to the vaccination. Educate me, show me the scripture because I think at this point, we all are on the same page that we want to protect our children and whatever we can do to protect our children should be provided. So let's talk about the facts, let's talk about the recent data, let's not actually promote those old methods pseudoscience, which is provided online, let's talk about the recent manufacturing safety of the vaccines. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
I think the mix about
I would have liked to say a more, but I thank you so much for
SPEAKER1 - the time. to submit it in in testimony, written testimony. Okay. Thank you for your time. Both of you.
Thank you. At this time, I welcome by wave team Samantha Lupo. And then on deck are Matt Mota and Gregory Turt. Trevor Rottola.
Samantha Lupo, are you here on Teams?
Okay. Our panel, Matt and Gregory are you here? But I3410 agree. Welcome.
June isn't okay. It looks like you have Matt with you too. Welcome.
SPEAKER26 - Thank Nice to meet you. Nice to meet you. Nice to meet you. Sure.
MATTHEW MOTTA - BOSTON UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF PUBLIC HEALTH - HB 604 - SB 1391 - Members of the joint committee on public health, I am Professor Matt Motta, I'm an Assistant Professor in the Department of Health Law Policy and Management at the Boston University school of public health. My research aims to better understand the prevalence causes and public health impact of Americans' negative attitudes toward vaccines. As an expert in the study of vaccine hesitancy and its public health consequences, I wanted to offer an abbreviated discussion of written testimony that I've passed along to the committee today in support of House Bill 604 and Senate Bill 1391. If enacted, I believe that this proposed legislation would promote public health by3462 encouraging vaccine uptake against vaccine preventable diseases, and here's why. Many Americans hold at least some level of skepticism about3470 safety and efficacy of vaccinating their children prior to entering public schools. Research for my colleagues and I3476 at BU, shows that skepticism about vaccine safety encourages parents to forego or delay vaccinating their children against vaccine preventable diseases. Public health researchers have found that the prevalence of nonmedical exemptions in schools is linked to lower vaccination rates and increased incidence of vaccine preventable diseases. Anecdotally, recent measles outbreaks in places with3499 comparatively high non vaccination rates like Rockland County, New York have3503 seen outbreaks of the measles virus in recent years. Non vaccination thereby poses a major public health concern as measles is highly transmissible and can lead to severe health complications. Ending religious vaccine exemptions protects all of us here in the Commonwealth by promoting vaccine uptake, but it's especially important for those who cannot, for medical reasons, be immunized against vaccine preventable diseases. These Bay Staters depend on all of us who are able vaccinate to do so in order to keep disease at bay, and this legislation can help to precisely that. Thanks again for considering, and I truly appreciate your time.
GREGORY TEREOTOLA - CONCERNED CITIZEN - HB 604 - SB 1391 - I'm Gregory Tereotola, I live in Andover, Massachusetts. While I'm a retired clinic administrator with a master's degree in public health, I'm not an academic, I don't represent an organization, I'm here as a grandpa, and my five year old grandson is going to be starting school this fall. I'm worried for him as he enters school at a time when misinformation about vaccines is rampant and unvaccinated school mates may jeopardize his health. I'm particularly concerned after seeing the recent statistics that over 150 kindergartens in Massachusetts are not adequately vaccinated against measles and that's why I stand before you today to offer my testimony in support of Senate Bill 1391 and House Bill. 604. I believe that these proposed measures are crucial3597 for safeguarding the health and well-being of my grandson and all the other vulnerable members of our society, our children. Childs and vaccinations are safe and effective in preventing the spread of dangerous diseases but we've seen a rise in vaccine preventable diseases due to a decline in vaccination rates. While I respect an adult choice to refuse medical care for religious reasons, it's important to recognize that our society has long established limits on religious practices when they pose a direct threat to the public health and safety of children. We do not allow religious beliefs, for example, to justify child neglect or refusing a child life saving medical treatment. Similarly, these religious exemptions for vaccines and eliminating them aligned with our duty to protect the health and well-being of children. The legislation will close the gaps in vaccination rates, strengthening herd immunity, necessary for those who cannot be3658 vaccinated. I urge the committee to support this legislation, it's based on scientific evidence and make sound public health policy. Let's do a better job to safeguard our children. Thank you. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Thank you. Please feel free to share your written testimony. At this time, I wanna welcome and then
give you a a heads up on who's on deck. I'm gonna welcome Hannah King, Beth Her, Lisa Altiviano, Lisa Glinsky, Ross Moyer, and Candice Edwards. Hannah King, you are welcome here by way of Teams.
SPEAKER27 - Hi.
HANNAH KING - CONCERNED CITIZEN - HB 604 - SB 1391 - Good morning. Thank you so much. I'm not here to argue religious doctrine with people who sound like they get paid off by the Vatican itself by saying there are no organized religions who are against vaccinations, you sound like the reason the forefathers drafted the first amendment in the first place. I'm not here to argue the history of vaccinations or the safety and efficacy of them, I can3721 read the regurgitation of the CDC for my own. Some of those testifying, perhaps, believe the people3727 who are not in support of these Bills and don't want vaccines are illiterate, it's quite the opposite. The fact is that there are risks to these vaccines, and every single risk in life has a choice, whether you believe that or not, there is a choice. It's very hypocritical to safeguard the pro vaccine immunocompromised and I'm only saying pro vaccine because the word anti vaccine has made it's way around again and not everybody else is immunocompromised, why is that? You're not listening to those who don't want this, you're not listening to any other literature or doctor of the opposing side, why is that? You can't even sit there and acknowledge that, yes, no matter who you voted for, who you listened to, the data changed over the last three years in regards to the Covid vaccines. You can't even sit there and acknowledge that without making sure that it's clear that the regurgitated CDC information is on record. How embarrassing to quote in the name of science and in the name of democracy, there are more unhealthy children nowadays even if the diseases are eradicated, an exemption is not a loophole, it's a right. It's 2023, we have much better sanitation and available running water and to point it onto the vaccinations as our saving grace, I have no words. What is3813 your goal? To force vaccinate the entire population? because that's what you're doing when you revoke exemptions, for a product that's nearly impossible to sue over, and it does come with a risk. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Have anybody
SPEAKER1 - --
SPEAKER5 - Thank you.
SPEAKER1 - -- anyone in support -- At this time, Hannah, you welcome submit your testimony in writing. Thank you very much for your time. I want a welcome in person, Beth Hur,
Just want to remind anyone. If there's any clapping or any responses, when you're not here, you will be to leave, and the more I do this, the longer it will be to make sure other people have time to speak. I want to welcome you, Beth. Thank you.
BETH HARR - CONCERNED CITIZEN - HB 604 - SB 1391 - As an ordained pastor, I believe in the power of prayer. So, as a good friend, challenge me, I will use my two minutes to speak to you and to God. Let us pray, creator3863 of the universe, God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, I beseech you on behalf of the state, on behalf of our citizens and on behalf of our legislative executive and judicial branches, we acknowledge that you are the giver of life and the giver of wisdom. I thank you for the life that you breathed into each person here. Your words say, if3886 anyone lacks wisdom, you should ask God, he gives it generously without finding fault, and it will be given3892 to you. We repent for3894 how we have looked to our own wisdom. So we humble ourselves before you today and ask for your wisdom. We ask that your holy presence fill this space and each branch of our government. I pray for open hearts to hear one another today that we may look and see the treasures inside of one another. Father, it is easy to see the things we disagree with, that don't align with our thoughts and our beliefs and think the other is wrong. Help us not to align with man but with you. Give us eyes to see your perspective. Mind, fear, let faith arise in this building, this state, and in our nation, bring beauty out of ashes where there seems to be no way, make a way. bring healing, reconciliation, and restoration to our state. I decree and declare that Massachusetts and its citizens will walk in freedom,3950 purpose, and destiny that it has been intended since its inception. I decree and declare a future and a hope for this state that this will be a place where each life is valued. As our founding fathers, we recognize the authority to govern state in our nation is from you God. I decree and declare that Massachusetts will be a city on a hill as John Winthrop declared in 16:30, and I call our state and citizens back to its original design purpose, in Jesus' name. Thank you. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
At this time, I wanna welcome Lisa Attaviano. Are you here by teams, Lisa?
SPEAKER29 - Yes. Good morning. Can you hear me?3989 No.
LISA OTTAVIANO - CONCERNED CITIZEN - HB 604 - SB 1391 - Good morning. Thank you for this opportunity to3993 express my opposition to all the proposed vaccine legislation with the exception of Bill H 582. If Bill S 1391 passes, I will be forced to choose between homeschooling my son or moving out of state. My family4005 does not want to move out of state, I am employed full time. I do not want to homeschool, nor does my son want to be homeschooled. He's looking forward to student teaching Spanish for younger grades this year with his all time favorite teacher, as well as running the club he sought permission to start and found an advisor for, a club you would not be allowed to attend if this Bill passes. The cost of living in this state is high and requires parents to be employed for most families, it will place undue financial burden when one parent or a single parent has to leave the workforce to homeschool and further exacerbate our current labor shortage. Some families would no longer be able to afford their current housing, and others would fall below the poverty line. Although the percentage of those religious exemptions is exceptionally low as each student withdraws from school to school loses their peer people funding. As an educator, I've witnessed tight school budgets and layoffs for4050 decades, and this will further aggravate the situation. As an educator, I've also4054 witnessed the academic social, emotional, behavioral delays resulting from excluding children and divesting unprepared parents into the role of educator. Vulnerable special needs, medically fragile, minority or low socioeconomic status, children will be disproportionately negatively impacted along with increased hardships for their families. In the last three years, the state has seen a massive exodus of residents, the fifth highest in the nation fleeing to states that honor health and religious freedom. States that every move religious exemptions and further restricted medical exemption, such as New York and California have seen an even larger exodus. It saddens me to imagine how many more will flee this state if exemptions are removed, and minor children are allowed to consent to vaccines without parental consent or knowledge. It also saddens me to imagine the massive amount of taxpayer dollars that will go toward the legal challenges of these Bills should they pass. If the legislature truly values equity as they purport to, the legislator will consider these inequities inherent in these unnecessary Bills and not pass them, and thank you very much for your time. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Thank you. At this time, I wanna welcome Alisa Galinski, and then it'll be followed up by Ross Moyer Candice Edwards, Julia Sesnowski, Genevieve McClag, John Patton, and Leah Allen. Leah Glinsky. Welcome.
SPEAKER30 - Hi.
LISA GILINSKY - CONCERNED CITIZEN - HB 604 - SB 1391 - Thank you to the committee for giving me the opportunity to speak with you today. My name is Lisa Gilinsky, I'm a Democrat and former Attorney living in Newton. When a Bill aimed at curtailing a religious exemption was last before this committee, my husband testified as part of a panel4147 of Attorneys about how Massachusetts vaccination policy was accomplishing herd immunity against diseases like measles while still allowing for the religious exemption. The thing that made the biggest and most lasting impression that day was a testimony and stories of hundreds of parents that came from all across the Commonwealth to watch the proceedings, people from all walks of life that have urged you to hear their personal stories because this issue means so much to them. I ask you to please meet these parents and hear their stories, you will hear about how their kids suffered adverse effects from vaccinations that turn their families' lives upside down. Hear these people, believe them, vaccine injuries are rare, but they are real. These are not conspiracy theorists or anti vaxxers, they are the Gold Star families in our war against communicable diseases, they have paid an unbearable price for our collective benefit. This Bill would force an impossible choice on them, risk similar harm to their other children or deprive those kids of a public education. Almost all religious traditions privilege the protection of children and families. According to the most recent Department of Public Health data, roughly only 1% of students in Massachusetts used an exemption for one or more vaccinations, meaning that almost 99% of our children are vaccinated. Massachusetts has accomplished4245 the highest vaccination rates in this country while still allowing for the religious exemptions. The existing law allows us to continue giving families like this means to follow their religious beliefs while still accomplishing our public health goals.
SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
could submit written testimony. Thank you. Just wanna remind everyone that the 2 minute rule is really about trying to allow everybody to speak today to meet the time capacity. This will be adjourned at 6 PM. Feel free to submit written testimony, though, and thank you for your time. At this time, I wanna welcome by way of teams, Ross Moyer.
SPEAKER7 - Can you hear me?
SPEAKER1 - We can. Welcome.
EDWARD MOYER - CONCERNED CITIZEN - HB 604 - SB 1391 - Thank you. I oppose all the Bills under consideration. Collecting these will serve an agenda that seeks to impose a biosecurity state surveillance system. The constitutionality is at minimum, a matter of debate and a climate where the many years legislated from the bench. Unfortunately, Massachusetts government, including the Department of Public Health acts in accordance with the profit making imperatives of the medical industrial complex4313 which exerts enormous influence on the4317 political class in the Bay State. Sadly, one of these say the same about the CDC and the FDA, objectively, both to ruin their reputation by engaging viewers pieces of mendacity, data crime, and by ignoring4331 boatloads of evidence and testimony that ran counter to the spurious4335 tape and effective unplug the construct that was assigned to the MRNA transactions on their roller. The justification for all of these Bills less than public health operates with probity and integrity. But this is manifesting not the case, both nationally and most frequently here in Massachusetts. On that note, I wonder if the panel is aware that as things now stand, the FDA's off presentation and licensure standards for vaccine require neither a demonstrated ability to prevent infection in your transition. In effect, this means immune solutions and cough syrup meet the FDA threshold of acting off reserve. Not to put a point on the state of public health in the United States, Massachusetts is now able to ask travesty. So much sense, every appointed or elected government figure is in their official capacity, lent himself to make the decision to no jazz when it's come up, but now I'm trying to beat a human right, after all. folding the threat of God's loss. It was someone's head in order to press them and to take care of the law. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
My lawyer
SPEAKER1 - is At this time, you're well to submit written testimony. Thank you very much. I wanna welcome Candice Edwards in person. Welcome.
CANDICE EDWARDS - CONCERNED CITIZEN - HB 604 - SB 1391 - HB 582 - Dear Chairs and the esteemed committee on public health, thank you for giving me this invaluable opportunity to speak before you today. I stand here as a mother, a voice for my medically complex immunocompromised child with an extensive IEP, and I implore you to listen with an open heart. Before I begin, I humbly ask you to set aside any preconceived notions you have about me. Please do not label me or assume that I am against science or vaccines, I am merely a parent advocating for4460 my child's well-being as any parent would. My son's education is at stake and I'm here to shed4467 light on the potential harm these Bills may inflict on my family. If they pass, my son's fair and appropriate public education could be jeopardized. Essential services like OT, PT, speech, reading, writing, social skills, ABA would all be gone. He has already suffered learning loss during the pandemic, leaving him significantly below grade level and I fear what the future holds if the school doors close on him. Our school system is a lifeline for us, providing everything my son needs under one roof. People all over the country come to Massachusetts because it is known to be the best in the country for services and supports for the special needs community. These Bills create barriers and burdens for families like mine, and it is my heartfelt plea that you consider the impacts on our lives. Home schooling is not an option for us, and my son's doctors agree that he is not a candidate for vaccination due to adverse events yet they will not write him a medical exemptions for fear of repercussions. This is why I wholeheartedly support H 582. We all share the same desire for our children to have the best possible future, to grow and to be the best versions of themselves, however, this cannot happen without access to education. We need to create an inclusive society where every child's right to an education is safeguarded. In conclusion, I urge you to consider the real lives affected by your decisions, and my son and countless others depend on you to bridge the gap and not widen disparities. Thank you very much for your time. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Thank you for your time. At this time, I welcome Julia Julie Seznowski, Followed by Genevieve McClag, John Patton, Leah Allen, William Ventassel, Paul Beninger.
Julie, are you with us on teams?
k. 1 more time. Julie says Nowski?
Okay. At this time, I welcome in person, Genevieve McLean.
SPEAKER5 - Hi.
GENEVIEVE MCCLAY - CONCERNED CITIZEN - HB 604 - SB 1391 - My name is Genevieve McClay, I'm a graduate of Boston University, a board member of Grace Church, and I'm an unvaccinated lifelong resident in Massachusetts. You may recognize me because this is my third time in 3.5 years testifying against many of the Bills presented today. My sisters and I were a part of the 1% attending school under the protection of a religious exemption from vaccines. My mom quickly realized we were at risk of serious adverse reactions, so every year, she would submit a statement to our schools based on her own faith and morally formed conscious. Many of these Bills threaten to restrict or remove this exemption entirely, which violates freedom of religion and is unconstitutional. Without this exemption, my entire life would have been different. I would have been barred from educational institutions and treated as a second class citizen. I'm concerned my future children will be treated that way if these Bills pass. Supporters of these Bills point out that4667 the Catholic Pope publicly supports vaccination, this seems to be their attempt to prove that Christians using a religious exemption are abusing it. But the thing is not all Christians are Catholic. There are hundreds of Christian denominations who interpret details of the bible differently, freedom of religion protects us from having to fit into a box. I'm a Christian who has attended an independent ministry since I was 10, my faith and my everyday life are not separate entities. When making important decisions, my pastor encourages us to sit with God in prayer and pay attention to what gives us peace in our heart because that peace is a sign that God is guiding us in that direction. When I become a mother, I will not vaccinate my children. If I'm at risk of serious adverse reactions, then they will be too, and it will be my job to protect them hopefully with a religious exemption. I'm not asking you to agree with me or make the same choices4720 for your family, I'm just asking you to let us be. Massachusetts is our home too. Thank you. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Thank you for your time.
SPEAKER1 - At this time, I'm going to welcome John Patton by way of Teams.
John, you're up.
John Patton.
Okay. We're gonna move on. For those of you who are waiting on Teams, Keep in mind that if you have your camera on and you're not ready to testify when you've been called, it is not a guarantee that you will be called again. At this time, I welcome Leah Allen.
Leah, I believe you are a classmate Welcome. Nice to see you.
SPEAKER36 - Yep.
LEAH ALLEN - CONCERNED CITIZEN - HB 604 - SB 1391 - To the Chairs and members of the committee, I thank you for hearing my testimony today in opposition to Senate Bill 1391 and House Bill 604. My name is Leah Allen, I am a wife, a registered nurse, and a mother to two young children and a third on the way. Today, I want to share with you how the passage of this Bill would impact my family. My three year old daughter started preschool last year. She is bright, funny, empathetic, and inquisitive, she was awarded the Almond Joy award her graduation because her teachers recognize the joy she brought to the classroom each4808 day. They told us she especially helped the kids who were having4812 a tough time with the transition to school because she has a caring heart and connects well with others. With the passage of this Bill, my beautiful daughter who has no control4823 over the choices I make for her as4825 a parent will suffer, she will be cast out, marginalized and will bear the brunt of yet another unfair mandate. My family's deeply held religious beliefs will not change, I have already lost a career I loved and worked hard for due to someone else's interpretation of my relationship with4844 God and yet I stand in my convictions, but the thought of my children being hurt by this is too much to bear. Please do not force more suffering on my children for something they cannot control. As a former member of the legislature in this very committee, I am asking you to weigh the seriousness of your decisions. If this Bill makes it to the floor, in between chatting with colleagues, maybe grabbing some candy from the second division, a yes vote would not change your life in any way, nor will any meaningful public health measures change but thousands of families in the Commonwealth will be devastated and their lives destroyed. This is the responsibility you face, and I urge the members not to vote favorably on these Bills. Thank you. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Thank you.4889 Nice to see you. Okay. This time, I'm going to welcome William Benton Castle on Teams. William, are you here?
SPEAKER37 - I'm here.
SPEAKER1 - Okay. Welcome, William.
SPEAKER37 - Okay. Hi.
WILLIAM VANTASSEL - CONCERNED CITIZEN - SB 1458 - SB 1391 - HB 604 - HB 582 - My name is William Vantassel, I'm a resident of Massachusetts, and I'm in opposition to Bill S 1391, which would eliminate religious exemptions to vaccination. I would also like to oppose Bill 1458, which would allow any physician to administer vaccinations to minors without parental consent or knowledge, also allowing the Department of Public Health to possibly deny religious exemptions. I would like to support Bill H 582 that would protect religious exemptions. If passed, the aforementioned Bills removing, religious exemptions will place hardships on families like my own. My religious views and values will not change because of changes in laws only access to our children to of our children to public and private education here in Massachusetts. Religious freedom is one of our fundamental human rights whether it is because of the use of aborted fetal tissue, the betrayal of faith, violating the purity of blood, or for any other religious reason, individual religious views on vaccines need to be respected. As a single father and Christian, please understand the hardship these Bills would bring to my small family. We would lose access to education here in Massachusetts. We love Massachusetts and do not want to move or have the means to do so. This is incredibly important to us, and please consider us in your decision. Thank you. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Thank you. At this time, I'd like to welcome in person, Doctor Paul Beninger, followed by Homer Allen, Kirsten Williams, Crystal O'Kle, Bonnie Manila, Lisa De Costa Lopez, and Janice Hudson, Doctor Benninger. Welcome.
PAUL BENINGER - TUFTS UNIVERSITY - HB 604 - SB 1391 - Thank you. I'm here to speak5020 in favor of Bill H 604. My name is Paul Beninger, and I'm a professor of public health and community medicine at Tufts University School of Medicine here in Boston. I'm trained in internal medicine and infectious diseases, and I have a certificate in epidemiology in an MBA. My career has taken me to FDA in the early years of HIV, to the pharmaceutical industry and the development of the human papillomavirus vaccine, and to academia and teaching, and to academic publishing as a co editor in chief of clinical therapeutics. I've published on the safe use of drugs and vaccines, and5061 on policy issues, and I've lectured on these topics on five continents.5065 I'm a husband, a father to two adult daughters, and a grandfather to two granddaughters, all of whom are fully vaccinated. My statement is simply this; vaccines have made a unique and unqualified contribution to the global health and increase in longevity of the world's human population through the eradication of contagious diseases such as smallpox, and the control of5093 many other infectious diseases. Two, through herd immunity, the value and importance also extends to the small percentages of persons who cannot be vaccinated by virtue of being immunocompromised. Three, a lobby reports that more than 30,000 doses are delivered every second worldwide preventing an estimated 2,000,000 to 3000000 deaths annually. Vaccines are one of the greatest public health achievements ever. Four, these benefits are compromised when high percentages of the population fail to be vaccinated. I strongly support Bill H 604, and happy to answer any questions. Thank you. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Benner?
SPEAKER2 - Thank you, doctor.
SPEAKER4 - Can you
SPEAKER2 - can you
SPEAKER1 - Can I ask that to be muted?
CYR - Can you talk to us a little bit about what happens, let's use measles as an example, so what happens if measles sort of appears in a classroom? You know, I represent the Cape and Islands district, we have a number of elementary schools who have a certain level of vaccination. You know, if a case of measles sort of appears in a classroom, what what plays out and how does the vaccination rate potentially affect the potential for an outbreak of measles?
BENINGER - Well, particularly, measles is the one of the most contagious of infectious diseases. It can actually be in a room for up to two hours after or person is left so that you may not5205 know wherever the source of the measles has been. What happens usually is that persons who've been vaccinated against measles are then protected pretty much for most of their lives, we vaccinate expectant mothers usually to protect their newborns because of the antibodies that develop across the placenta and protect the the the newborn child. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
There we go.
Senator Kennedy, you're up if you wanna unmute yourself.
SPEAKER38 - Can you hear me?
SPEAKER26 - There's no audio on teams.
SPEAKER1 - Senator Kennedy, are you able to unmute your
SPEAKER21 - Someone cut the audio to the external feed, please fix it.
SPEAKER1 - Senator Kennedy, we seem
SPEAKER5 - to be having some technical issues. We're going to come back to you if
SPEAKER1 - you could just wait.
SPEAKER32 - Please fix the audio on Teams.
SPEAKER26 - Democracy at its finest. It's
SPEAKER40 - it's technology at its finest.
SPEAKER14 - Do you
SPEAKER1 - go Senator Kennedy?
SPEAKER26 - No. This is purposeful.
SPEAKER1 - Okay. If you're not Senator Kennedy, please put your mic on mute or you will be logged out.
Okay. Senator Kennedy?
SPEAKER2 - Yes.
SPEAKER1 - Go ahead. You're on. Okay.
SEN EDWARD KENNEDY - SB 1391 - HB 604 - Good morning, Chair Cyr, Chair Decker, and members of the joint committee on public health. Thank you for the opportunity to testify this5366 morning on behalf of legislation that I5368 have filed; Senate Bill 1391, an act relative to vaccines and preventing future disease outbreaks, which is a sister Bill to House 604 filed by Representative Andy Vargas. These Bills would remove non-medical exemptions from vaccinations required for school entry. In Massachusetts, children are required to receive a schedule of vaccinations for diseases including polio, measles, mumps, and rubella, etcetera. Currently, parents cannot take their children out of vaccines for medical or religious reasons. This Bill would remove nonmedical exemptions for vaccinations. This Bill would improve data collection for immunization rates across Massachusetts. The language contained within this Bill was reported out favorably by the joint committee on public health last session. Schools, whether they are public, private, or charter are vital community resources where children spend a large portion of their time. Due to the nature of their importance and function, the impact schools have on public health must be a priority consideration. Herd immunity in our schools is an essential and effective way to prevent the next disease outbreak. If we can stop the spread of disease in schools, we have a better chance of preventing this spread to the wider public. Unfortunately, the religious exemption to require school vaccinations presents an obstacle to reaching herd immunity. Recent decades have seen a rapid rise in the use of religious exemptions in Massachusetts. So called religious exemptions in Massachusetts have risen by an astonishing 500% since the 1980s despite residents religious affiliations in the Commonwealth decreasing over the same time span. This indicates that many people are taking advantage of the religious exemption and not vaccinating their children because of personal beliefs or misinformation rather than legitimately deeply held religious concerns. Massachusetts does not allow vaccine exemptions for philosophical reasons, using the religious exemption to exempt oneself from getting a vaccine for non religious reasons is already a violation of the law. This Bill pertain strictly to the religious exemption. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Schools.
SPEAKER1 - Thank you, Senator Kennedy Kennedy. Thank you. Your your time is up, but please do submit the rest of5521 your testimony in writing. We appreciate your time.
SPEAKER40 - Okay. I will. Thank you very much.
SPEAKER1 - Thank thank you. At this time, I wanna welcome by way of teams, Homer Allen, followed by Kirsten Williams, Crystal, Oakle, Bonnie Manila,5536 Lisa De Costa Lopez, Janice Hudson, and Till Rosenband.
Are you here, Homer? Homer Allen?
5552 Okay.5552 We're gonna move on to in person, Kirsten Williams.5556 Welcome.
Hello? Okay.
KRISTEN WILLIAMS - CONCERNED CITIZEN - HB 582 - SB 1391 - HB 604 - Good morning members of the Public Health Committee. I am here to speak in support of H 582, Representative Soter's Bill and in opposition to the remaining Bills on the docket. You probably can't see this picture from here, but this is the picture I took a couple weeks ago of my eight year old daughter sleeping on me after she had an anxiety attack. She's also recently developed physical ticks as a result of her anxiety, and at my request her pediatrician contacted every therapist covered by our insurance to help me get her the services she needs, but was unable to find anyone currently taking new patients. As I'm sure we all know, the mental health crisis in this country is at an all time high, and many people are struggling to get the help they need. It's very likely that I will have to rely on our school district counselors and psychologists to help her get the help she needs. My question to all of you is if you decide to remove the religious exemptions, where will all the the children who currently utilize the school system services go? Where will all5621 the kids on IEPs go? Where will all the children5623 using OT, PT, speech, and5625 special needs services go? I know firsthand how important these services are to a child's success because I used to work as a speech assistant in the public school system. Do you have a plan to make sure these kids receive the services they5637 desperately need, or is that none of your concern? Also, I've always been proud to live in Massachusetts, a state that prides itself on inclusion, and welcomes with open arms anyone who feels marginalized to join our great Commonwealth, but lately, I have felt pride or joy living here. I feel dispensable and discriminated against for practicing my religious freedoms, and, frankly, constantly fighting these Bills is ruining my mental health. Like many of the people in this room, I'm sure, I've considered moving to a state that isn't constantly threatening our religious5665 exemption rights. If these Bills were to pass, I don't know how I'm gonna look my daughters in the eyes and tell them that in the most diverse and inclusive state in this country, they aren't welcome, that they aren't allowed to be with their peers or partake in the extracurricular activities they love. Please vote no on these discriminatory Bills, our children are not sick, they are not carrying diseases, and they are not a threat. Thank you. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Don't do it.
At this time, I'm going to welcome Crystal Oka.
Crystal, are you here by teams?
Okay. In person, I've been a welcome Bonnie Manila, followed by Lisa De Costa Lopez, Janice Hudson till, rose, and Ben followed by a panel that will include Jennifer N Twistle and Grace N Twistle.
Welcome. Hi. Thank you.
BONNIE MANILLA - CONCERNED CITIZEN - HB 604 - SB 1391 - Dear committee members, for the third time, our most private family decisions are thrust into the open for public scrutiny. Our lives have revolved around these Bills, and the toll on us has been immense. My oldest son is seven and loves kindergarten. Last year, these Bills died for the second time, but we knew they would be back in January despite massive opposition. I told our principal we'd keep all three of our children in speech as long as allowed, but we felt we had no choice but to homeschool. She was surprised and said, we would always be welcome. I know she meant that but we could not put our children in a position to be kicked out of school and had to avoid that traumatic situation. She was shocked to hear that children in Massachusetts were under constant threat of being denied in education because of religious beliefs. We were fortunate to be able to sacrifice my5773 career in health care to stay home with my kids and educate them. My husband works overtime to provide for us, we stand to lose access to schools and important IEP speech services, but what about families who are unable to make one income work and need5787 even more services? What will happen to them? What happens when our kids want to play sports, go to5793 camp, trade school, or college? The answer is not a trip to the doctor's office. Families who hold sincere religious beliefs will not go against them, the Bills do not improve rates, they kick certain people out of society. We may have to leave our state that was once a refuge for religious freedom but again, what about those who can't? My son loves local history, ask him anything, he's confused about being targeted for being different. In contradiction to the freedoms he's learning about, no one treats us differently for our beliefs, not friends, family, coaches, or principals who value education above compliance to one fits all standard. It's only a few people who are so bothered by those who are different that they want to exclude them. How is this inclusive? The impact these Bills have are devastating to our family, and it breaks my heart knowing that we are the lucky ones. Please think about the negative impact these Bills will have on families across the state and preserve everyone's right to an education. Thank you. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Thank you for your time.
SPEAKER1 - I'm gonna ask again, no more clapping.
Every time I stop, that's less time we have for others to get to be able to speak. Thank you for those of you who were respecting the rules and making time for others. At this time, I'm going to ask by way of teams, Lisa De Costa Lopez.
SPEAKER42 - Hi. Good morning.
LISA DECOSTA LOPEZ - CONCERNED CITIZEN - HB 582 - HB 604 - SB 1391 - Good morning. So I'm here to support bill H 582 and oppose all the remaining Bills on the docket today. My son was vaccine injured at the age of two, he's now nine on an IEP with the needs for OT, PT, speech services and has been using your religious exemption because his doctor was afraid to give him a medical exemption. Schools are already suffering from shortages of staff and state funds, passing the community immunity act is just going to take away more funding that should be going towards students' education in the state rather than reporting vaccines to the state, vaccine status to the DPH. Just because the school isn't reporting the vaccine records to the state does not mean the students are unvaccinated. Let's stop with the fear tactics of red dots on a map and stick to actual facts. The act relative to routine childhood immunization is only going to hurt many children in receiving an education, when the flu vaccine became a mandate for a short time, parents relied on a religious exam. Just because parents like myself use it doesn't mean it's because we are against all vaccines. It's a parent's choice on what to give their children, not the state. Every child is different, vaccines are not a one size fit all. If vaccines work for those who are vaccinated to feel protected, what is the difference between my son who's vaccine injured in an immunocompromised child if both can't be vaccinated but yet my son can't receive a medical exemption? Which child is supposed to be chosen to receive an education? Are you going to tell my nine year old who loves school he can't attend because an immunocompromised child or a parent who's afraid the vaccines their child received isn't going to work? There's no need for the state of Massachusetts to mandate more vaccines or takeaway religious exemptions. Where are the facts that there's a rising problem from unvaccinated students. Thank you for your time. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Thank you for your time.
SPEAKER1 - At this I would welcome Janice Hudson in person. Welcome.
JANICE HUDSON - CONCERNED CITIZEN - SB 1391 - HB 604 - Good morning. My name is Janice Hudson, I am here to oppose Bill's S 1391, H 604. My partner and I moved here eight years ago because Massachusetts better align with our political values and we thought raising a family here would be safe and just. Instead, I've spent most of my time here fighting to retain my rights, my job, and my children's education. It became clear that in Massachusetts, our government associates certain religious practices with certain negative stereotypes. We learn that if you align with a God that isn't the government and the industries that fund them, you will be coerced, you will be threatened and ultimately forced to step in line despite your beliefs or your constitutional rights. That's not hyperbole, that is my lived experience here in Mass. Medical and religious freedoms are under attack here today, and I normally bring a big stack of empirical evidence to support that you probably never get to see, so today, I will just say this, I have been in positions like yours before, sitting on boards, chairing committees, forced to make difficult decisions for large groups. As a medical professional for years, I fell victim to propaganda, parotid phrases and scripts given to me by my higher ups, made decisions to appease my donors and frankly was discouraged from using my own critical thinking skills and my own sense of logic. It wasn't until6085 my own vaccine injury from the HPV series which6089 destroyed my chances of becoming a professional athlete that I was able to open my mind to another point of view. In my recovery, I spent 12 years researching understanding the history, understanding the literature, and ultimately,6103 my religious conflicts with6105 the current vaccine program, and it took a long time to get here because the censorship around this topic is massive and it's calculated. I urge you to open your mind to the possibility that you have been lied to about by a powerful industry with vested interests. We do have a public health crisis in this country and in this state but removing the religious exemption isn't going to do a thing about it. We know that from the data and from simple logic. Thank you very much for6132 your time. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Thank you for your time.
SPEAKER1 - At this time, I wanna welcome Till Rosenban by way of teams. Till, are you with us?
Till Rosenband.
Okay. I'm going6152 to welcome in person the panel of Jennifer6154 and Grace and Twistle. followed by Veronica Hernandez, Carol Langley, Mary Alamsetti, Cara Sotos6163 Sorry about this, Kara. So TIERococ copolysis, you can correct me when you come up. At this time, welcome Jennifer and Grace. Are you here alone?
SPEAKER45 - Yes. Grace couldn't be here.
SPEAKER36 - Okay. Welcome.
JENNIFER TWISTLE - CONCERNED CITIZEN - HB 604 - SB 1391 - HB 582 - Thank you. I'm here oppose the Bills being heard today with the exception of supporting H 582. I sat here four years ago in a packed auditorium until 1:00 AM and also virtually in 2021. As I defend the rights of our children6191 for the third time, I realize there's nothing I can say in two minutes that's going to change your6195 mind. We flood these hearings with overwhelming opposition and receive only disregard in return. As I look up and observe the contempt that so many can only thinly vale for us, I have a different message. Thank you. Four years ago, I was still very much alone. I felt bullied by our doctors. I submitted to vaccines that I believe caused more harm than the benefit to my daughter because I didn't feel I had another option. I had no like minded community, these Bills united us. You awaken the mama bears I had been looking for, I found my people in my community, my daughter gained a huge circle of beers, I found some of the best friends I've ever wish for the most supportive and knowledgeable and empathetic group of women I could ever hope to go through life with. I am no longer alone, we homeschool together, we share community and resources, we care for one another, and we unite to defend our freedoms. I decided that only I am ultimately in charge of the6244 health of my family, nobody knows our medical history and what is best for us more than me, not a doctor, not a government official, I do. I have to live with my autoimmune conditions and the consequences of any interventions, I will no longer be bullied or forced into treatments that don't improve my health. I will never again fear we will have to leave the only state we've ever lived in or imagine putting our house for sale after how hard we've worked to pay for and improve on it due to politics. I will never doubt my ability to homeschool if given no other6271 choice,6271 my daughter will never suffer socially or miss out on important milestones that come along with a traditional school setting. We are thriving in spite of constant political opposition. I don't know what my life would have looked like for the past four years, had you not attempted to discriminate against our children? So, thank you for the unintended consequences of your actions. You can try to remove our children from your schools, but you will not force us out of society, and we will not just comply to your will. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Thank you for your time. At this time, I would welcome Veronica Hernandez by way of Teams.
Veronica.
SPEAKER31 - Thank you.
SPEAKER1 - Okay. I'm gonna ask LIS to please reset the clock. Hold on, Veronica. We'll be right with you.
Okay. Thank you. Welcome, Veronica.
SPEAKER31 - Thank you.
VERONICA HERNANDEZ - CONCERNED CITIZEN - HB 582 - HB 604 - SB 1391 - Dear honorable committee members, my name is Veronica, and I live in Massachusetts. I oppose all the proposed Bills with the exception of H 582. I am a Christian, I'm a single mother, I believe these Bills are discriminatory and placed an unnecessary burden on parents who are6342 simply trying to get schooling and6344 education for their children while living out6346 their religious convictions and beliefs. In regards to religious exemptions, I do want to note that even within Christian denominations, there is what we call non-essential differences, so this proves there are differences even within the same religion. These differences do not compromise the main doctrinal belief, religious beliefs should be respected. I also believe it is absurd to grant a child consent to vaccinate without a parents knowledge, this even leaves a child exposed to being pressured to vaccinate from school faculty, no child should be subjected to that. While a child is still in their parents' home, the parents should have responsibility and rights over their children, not the school. The school cannot even determine what adverse reactions the child will have. Will the school be responsible for any reactions? I am in the process of looking to move, and I have been specifically avoiding moving to Connecticut because of how they removed religious exemptions from vaccines. If this happens in Massachusetts, I will absolutely consider moving out of Massachusetts. This shouldn't be, and this shouldn't be what Massachusetts is known for. Thank you. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Thank you. At this time, I welcome Carol Langley.
k.
I'm gonna go back to Teams, and welcome Mary Ellum Ellum Seth.
SPEAKER32 - I am here. I don't know. Guys, can you hear me?
SPEAKER1 - We can hear you very welcome.
SPEAKER29 - Do I just start?
SPEAKER1 - Yeah. Mary, you have 2 minutes. Go ahead and start. I'm sorry, actually. Is this is this Carol Langley?
SPEAKER32 - Yes.
SPEAKER1 - Oh, okay. We had you in person. Go ahead, Carol.
SPEAKER32 - Okay.
CAROL LANGLEY - CONCERNED CITIZEN - HB 604 - SB 1391 - So I'm a nurse and the mother of two vaccine injured children. When both of my children were injured, it happened in separate times, I was unable to obtain appropriate medical care and treatment in6480 a timely manner. I was told that what happened to my kids had nothing to do with the vaccines that they had received, and I was gaslighted, I was kicked out of offices and what should have been an obvious and clear diagnosis, it was literally textbook encephalopathy was dismissed, was blatantly dismissed, disregarded, and frankly, no one cared. If you mandate these vaccines, you remove that religious exemption, you're mandating vaccines, you are mandating vaccine injury. I want to know, I testified6514 in December 2019, has any effort been made to identify children like mine who are high risk for vaccine in an injury or to better identify those injuries and treat and manage them before you guys remove that religious exemption? Because from where I stand, I'm not vaccinating my children, I do not care what you pass. This isn't happening, I said no, I am mom, I have a God given right to protect my children, and I will do so. We can't just push things through and hope everything's going to be okay. I've consistently heard politicians say, vaccines are safe and effective when that's a blatant lie, it's a lie, vaccines are unavoidably unsafe, and we all know it and my children paid. I'm not risking another brain injury on one of my children So somebody else's child or another adult feels safe having their child play on a playground or go to school, or so politicians6581 can pat each other on the back and congratulate each other and think they did a good job. This is a violation of so many of our rights, we're 95 plus percent vaccinated prior to Covid, which means we've met herd immunity, which means this isn't about SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
public safety, this is about the school.
k.
SPEAKER1 - Thank you for your time. At this time, you're welcome to submit the rest of your testimony in writing. Thank you. At this time, I'd like to welcome We'll try 1 more time on Teams. Mary, Alam Seti.
k. Kara,
And it's gonna be followed by Chris Hott, Heidi Baronson, Kale MP, Evan Hines. Welcome.
SPEAKER46 - Hello.
KARA SOTEROPULOS - CONCERNED CITIZEN - HB 604 - SB 1391 - Thank you, sir, Madam Chair and esteemed committee members. My name is Kara Soteropulos, I am a devout Christian, mother, wife, friend6641 and master's level professional and our family is part of the less than 1% that uses religious exemption in the state of Massachusetts. I am here to oppose the Bills filed by Representative Vargas, Senator Rausch, and Representative Driscoll,6658 I6658 support Rep Soter. Before I begin, I ask that you put your assumptions about me aside, stop6665 labeling6665 me, stop calling me names, please see me as a person. I am a wife, a mom, a daughter, a friend, I have my master's degree, and I'm a respected professional, please be open minded. If the Bills filed by Senator Rausch and Rep Vargas were to pass, my perfectly healthy children would be forbidden from attending the Christian school they attend and camps outside of my home. This action would have a lifelong impact on my boys, they could not attend school. You would forbid them from being educated,6697 that impact cannot be understated. My youngest has learning needs that would not6701 be met. My oldest has already been negatively impacted by Covid restrictions, both educationally and socially. We would be forced to move, we would not comply. This move would devastate my family, both financially and emotionally. We love our community, we pay our taxes, we respect your laws, we go to work every day. We would be ripped from6723 it unfairly. I will not raise my kids in a state where they don't have the same rights as other children. We would be another Massachusetts family that fled the state but I don't think we would get any offers of assistance, I don't believe we would get any iPads or any funding to help with our refugee status. So please listen, these Bills have real impacts, they have real children and real families and real lives attached to them. Thank you. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Thank you. At this time, I wanna welcome Chris Hawk who I believe is with us by way of phone. Chris Hawk, are you there?
Chris?
Okay. In person do we have Heidi Behrenson? Welcome.
SPEAKER13 - Joe
HEIDI BERENSON - CONCERNED CITIZEN - HB 604 - SB 1391 - Chair Decker, Chair Cyr in absentia and the honorable committee. I'm Heidi Berenson, I'm a two time Emmy and Peabody Award winner for ABC News, CBS News, Good Morning America, and CNN. I now have my own business right here in my home state of Massachusetts. For the record, while I have no children and I have two nieces, I'm here for all the children in this state. I just feel compelled to speak up and speak out. Quite simply, I implore you on three fronts; number one, please refrain from mandating any new shots. Number two, please maintain the religious and medical exemptions. Number three, please retain parents' rights to be in charge. It's heartwarming that all of you, all of us here in this auditorium want to protect our children, including those from backgrounds where in person schooling is most critical. Having had a front row seat in the media, I know even the most assiduous fact checking can sometimes get it wrong, so we all need to be open to new information. In fact, there is mounting evidence, we're hearing it right here today in this auditorium. The most recent shots have wreaked havoc and caused irreversible damage to children and families, in fact, the risks outweigh the benefits. Indeed, you have to ask, am I willing to accept both the moral responsibility and the legal liability? What's the bottom line? Please, let's strike a balance. Rather than mandatory, let's let the story be decided by medical professionals and parents on a case by case basis rather on a one6893 size fits all. Whether governing religious or health issues, we need to remember what this country was founded on; individual rights and freedom. Thank you. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Thank you for your time. At this time, I'd like to welcome by way of teams, Kale MP.
K o m p. Are you with us? Welcome.
SPEAKER47 - Yes. Can you hear me?
SPEAKER1 - I can hear you. Go ahead.
SPEAKER47 - Okay.
KAYLA EMPEY - CONCERNED CITIZEN - HB 582 - SB 1391 - HB 604 - I am testifying in support of Bill H 582 and in opposition to the other Bills presented. I have the three children, they are valuable members of their school community. They love to play football and cheerlead, and they love attending school. They should never be ostracized or discriminated against due to our family's religious beliefs. They are children among many who will only be hurt by these Bills which are proposing a solution to a problem that simply does not exist since our exemption rate is6947 one of the lowest in the country. Since the lockdown, the amount children needing mental health services has skyrocketed with a lack of available resources. If we deny children their right to6957 attend school, we will only increase the number of children needing those services. There have been several outbreaks of whooping cough in schools with 100% vaccination rates recently, so removing the exemption does not guarantee safety from these outbreaks. My second child received all routine infant vaccines and suffered serious adverse reactions that worsen each time. High pitched screaming, full body rashes, fevers that reached 106 degrees, ticks and loss of speech, severe allergies that require us to have an EpiPen on hand at all times.
The last time he was vaccinated, I had to hold it's shaking body while he was completely unresponsive. My two oldest children are also diagnosed with asthma ADHD and speech disorder, they are on an IDP and6998 504 plan. If they are denied the right to attend school, that would also mean being7002 denied the services that they so desperately need to succeed. Despite my son's adverse reactions to my family's history of the death of my maternal aunt and hospitalization of my sister immediately following infant vaccines, my children do not qualify for medical exemptions. Their doctor agrees fully with our decision to not vaccinate but will not write a medical exemption out of fear of repercussion. My youngest child hasn't received a single does not suffer from any of the chronic health issues my other two children have, she is completely healthy and has been named a leader and role model among her classmates. We rely strongly on our faith for guidance, and that has led us against further vaccination. Continuing to vaccinate our children would be risking severe harm to them and goes against our sincerely held beliefs. Please continue to protect our children and their right to religious freedom, our children matter. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Thank you for your time.
SPEAKER1 - At this time, I'd like to welcome Evan Hines followed by Leonidas Chaka Chacalos, Dana Demetrio, Yan Shen, Raymond C, Susan Selderman, and Samantha Jolif. Welcome.
EVAN HINES - ELIOT CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH - HB 604 - SB 1391 - Good morning. I am the Reverend Doctor Evan Charles Hines, I am the senior pastor of the Eliot Congregational Church of Roxbury, and I am here to ask you not to remove religious exemptions for vaccines. I am personally vaccinated, I have encouraged my congregation, community, and immediate family members to get vaccinated. With my support Eliot7091 Church has hosted vaccine clinics with Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston Medical Center, and the Demicks Center. While I support vaccines, I also believe in the theological principle of free will based upon the bible scripture found in 1st Corinthians 6:19, which states that a person's body is the temple of God. I have written letters of support for religious exemption from vaccines, for members of my congregation. Post Covid, I have witnessed a significant change in the way in which religion is expressed and practiced while less traditional still very valid. I believe removing the religious exemption deprives people of their religious liberty is7136 unconstitutional and will result in greater disparity in education, especially for marginalized and vulnerable children. With over 30 years of experience as a religious leader and the member of the clergy, I am asking that you not remove religious exemptions for7153 vaccines. Thank you. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
Thank you for your time.
SPEAKER1 - At this time, and welcome on teams, Leonidus,
Leonidas, are you here? I'm I'm actually his wife. If you just texted me that -- -- that Oh, you got him. Okay. He was locked out for a minute. Okay. Welcome.
SPEAKER26 - Thank you, madam, sheriff for the time to speak. Can you hear me alright?
SPEAKER1 - We can hear you.
LEONIDAS CHAKALOS - CONCERNED CITIZEN - HB 604 - SB 1391 - I would just like to express7182 my bewildered as to the notion that the Commonwealth of Massachusetts is contemplating the idea of taking away religious liberty. By doing so, you're actually taking away the fundamental right of an education to a child. I understand other states are doing this, but for the Commonwealth to do this, this is disgrace. I have a child down the sewer system, and it may lead to that child being kicked out of school, not being able to take advantage of his fundamental right to an education, and because of what exactly? Fear with an outbreak, fear of something that is not actually happening at the moment. And who exactly were we trying to protect with this proposed legislation? Vaccinated kids? Unvaccinated7228 kids? Autoimmune deficient people? The trade off being taking away fundamental rights of religion and education, this is shocking. I find the notion striking down religious liberties for fear of the unknown to be an abhorrent, find it unamerican and to be candid, it's soviet like. It's definitely a Marxist view of the citizen. If anyone knows anything about the history of the 20th century, this must be very clear to you. Again, you're manufacturing a fear of potential outbreak and to solve this manufactured fear, we want to take away religious liberties? I just watched Senator Kennedy, it's just so cavalier. This is unconscionably and I received an email from Representative Vargas' office claiming that religious exertions are down or are on the rise, but religious affiliations are are down overall, and it just doesn't make any sense to me because I do know that spirituality apparently is on the7304 rise. SHOW NON-ESSENTIAL DIALOGUE
and for a State representative offices to try to determine the
SPEAKER5 - legal police.
SPEAKER1 - At this time, I if you have further testimony, you are you are welcome to submit it in writing Thank you.
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