Bill > S902

Introduced Session

This bill revises the requirements concerning exemptions from mandatory student immunization requirements. Under the bill, provisions in the State Sanitary Code, or provisions otherwise set forth in statute or regulation, which require the immunization of children in public or private licensed child care centers and students at public or private elementary or secondary schools and institutions of higher education, are to provide for an exemption from the mandatory immunization requirements based upon a statement submitted to the child care center, elementary or secondary school, or institution of higher education, as applicable, using a standard form designated by the Department of Health by a licensed physician, doctor of osteopathy, or advanced practice nurse indicating: (1) that the vaccine is medically contraindicated for a specific period of time; (2) the professional's full name, address, and national provider identifier (or the national provider identifier of the professional's collaborating physician); and (3) the reasons for the medical contraindication, which are to be valid medical reasons consistent with guidelines issued by the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) in the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The child or student will be exempt from receiving the indicated vaccination for the stated period of time. In addition, the bill authorizes an exemption from mandatory immunization requirements for a child or student who has a sibling who experienced a vaccine injury. To qualify for the exemption, the child or student will be required to submit to the Department of Health documentation of a final determination of vaccine injury issued through the Vaccine Injury Compensation Program administered by the Health Resources and Services Administration in the United States Department of Health and Human Services or a final judgment issued by a court of competent jurisdiction that includes a finding of vaccine injury. Documentation of the department's approval of a sibling vaccine injury exemption will be submitted to the school or child care center by the child or student, or by the child or student's parent or guardian, if the child or student is a minor. Medical and sibling vaccine injury exemptions may be subject to review and approval by a physician employed by or consulting for the county or local board of health, and may be audited by county and local boards of health. Approved medical and sibling vaccine injury exemptions will be forwarded for inclusion in the New Jersey Immunization Information System (NJIIS). The bill requires the NJIIS to be updated no later than one year after the effective date of the bill to allow for the inclusion of medical exemption information, and to allow for a printable report of information included in the registry. The bill prohibits a public child care center, elementary or secondary school, or institution of higher education from exempting a child or student from a mandatory immunization unless the child or student, or the child's or student's parent or guardian if the child or student is a minor, complies with all of the applicable requirements set forth in the bill. The bill allows nonpublic child care centers, preschool programs, elementary and secondary schools, and institutions of higher education to adopt a policy authorizing the admission of children and students who are not in full compliance with mandatory immunization requirements and who do not meet the requirements for a medical or sibling vaccine injury exemption, provided that the facility requires each child or student enrolled in the child care center, preschool program, school, or institution of higher education, or the child's or student's parent or guardian if the child or student is a minor, to sign an acknowledgement form, at the time of enrollment, that sets forth the facility's policy with regard to admitting children or students who are not in full compliance with mandatory immunization requirements, and that indicates the immunization rates for the facility for the prior academic year. The child care center, preschool program, school, or institution of higher education will additionally be required to prominently post its policy concerning the admission of children or students who are not fully immunized, and the facility's immunization rates for the prior academic year, at each entrance to the facility. The Commissioner of Health will be required to adopt rules and regulations concerning the format of acknowledgement forms used by nonpublic schools for this purpose. A child or student who is not in compliance with mandatory immunization requirements who seeks to attend the nonpublic child care center, preschool program, school, or institution of higher education will be required to provide the facility with written notice of which specific immunization requirements the child or student is not in compliance with and sign a form that states that the child or student, or the child or student's parent or guardian, as applicable, understands the risks and benefits of vaccination and acknowledges that the child or student may be excluded from attendance in the event of the occurrence of a communicable disease or condition or threat of a communicable disease or condition. The bill provides that the current statutory list of uses for the NJIIS is nonexclusive. The bill additionally removes a provision of current law that provides that an agency, organization, or other entity authorized to access information in the NJIIS may not use any report made by a health care provider in any punitive manner against the provider. The bill provides the Commissioner of Health with expedited rulemaking authority in order to provide guidance to child care centers, schools, and public health authorities, as they will need to implement its provisions on a timely basis, including creating acknowledgement forms that may be used by nonpublic institutions that admit children and students who are not fully compliant with mandatory immunization requirements. The provisions of the bill will take effect 180 days after the date of enactment.

AI Summary

Committee Categories

Stephen Sweeney (D)*,  Joe Vitale (D)*, 

Introduced in the Senate, Referred to Senate Health, Human Services and Senior Citizens Committee (on 01/14/2020)

Official Document