Residents who want to weigh in on Florida's plan to stop requiring four vaccines for school entry can do so in person in Seminole County this week.
The Florida Department of Health has scheduled a public hearing for Thursday, Oct. 8, from 9 a.m. to noon, or until the hearing ends if that comes first, at the Orlando Marriott Lake Mary, 1501 International Parkway, in Grand Ballroom E, F, G and H. The hearing is on proposed changes to the department's rule on immunization requirements for school entry, according to WUSF, which published the hearing details the department announced on Sept. 30.
What would change
Under the proposal, shots for chickenpox (varicella), hepatitis B, Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib) and pneumococcal conjugate would no longer be required for children entering public and private schools from prekindergarten through 12th grade, according to the News Service of Florida. WUSF reported the change would also apply to daycares.
Those four requirements are set by department rule rather than state law, which is why the agency can drop them on its own. Other required vaccines, including those for measles, mumps, rubella and polio, are written into law and could be changed only by the Legislature.
The department has also stepped back from a related idea. In August it removed language from its proposal that would have let parents claim an exemption based on a "sincerely held moral or ethical belief," the News Service of Florida reported. Existing nonmedical exemptions must be based on religious tenets and practices.
