BOSTON — The clock is ticking for Chrystal Anderson.
She’s got a few weeks to decide whether to vaccinate her school-aged kids for the flu, as mandated by the state in August
“I got a letter from the school yesterday stating that the children have to be vaccinated by the 31st. Or they don’t go to school,” said the Wrentham mom of three.
Under the order issued by Governor Charlie Baker, all Massachusetts students six months of age and older are required to by vaccinated by the end of December, or they cannot continue to attend school come January.
The mandate puts her in a bind, says Anderson, because her youngest daughter has underlying conditions that could be triggered by the flu shot.
“My children have had the flu shot previously. And they got very sick. They ended up with the flu. One of them ended up in the hospital,” she said, adding that her children have all the other requires immunizations for school. “I’m putting chemicals into my children’s bodies, because somebody is telling me I have to. I don’t think that that’s right”
Massachusetts allows vaccine exemptions for either medical or religious reasons, as long as proper documentation is provided.
A medical exemption requires a note from a doctor or health care professional. Religious exemptions are easier to get, requiring only a letter signed by a parent or guardian stating that immunizations conflicts with their religious
25 Investigates wanted to know how many parents have already opted out of the flu vaccine. We contacted 204 school districts across Massachusetts that have some form of in-person learning. We got responses from 112, which collectively have 309, 805 students. Data shows 719 flu vaccine exemptions were granted between August and end of October. Only 30 districts disclosed the type of exemption that was issued. In those districts, 70% of the exemptions were for religious reasons.
We shared our findings with Dr. Richard Malley, an infectious disease expert at Boston Children’s Hospital, who says the flu vaccine is especially important this year because healthcare resources are already strained with the COVID19 pandemic.
“I see in the data that you quote, the very strong possibility that people are recognizing that as members of society, we are not only trying to protect ourselves against infectious diseases, but also trying to protect others who may not respond to vaccines,” he said. “We have a very good idea of what the track record of this vaccine is and it is generally considered very safe for children as well as for adults.”
Anderson says she will consider requesting an exemption for her daughter. But she’s also considering a more drastic step.
“I don’t want to use a religious exemption. I don’t believe that I should have to use something that’s false. And I don’t want to hurt other people that are religious [from getting] accepted in the future,” she said. “I think if they don’t prolong it, and postpone the date of the 31st, that my daughter will be going to Rhode Island. She’ll be moving with her father.”
Just last week, a class action lawsuit was filed challenging the constitutionality of the governor’s flu vaccine mandate. Anderson is waiting to see what happens with the lawsuit before making any decisions. But she’s hopeful the mandate will be overturned.
All students, including remote learners, have until December 31st to present proof that they’ve gotten the vaccine, or request an exemption. Therefore, the number flu vaccine exemptions is expected to increase in the coming weeks.
Download the free Boston 25 News app for up-to-the-minute push alerts
>> Complete local and national coronavirus coverage here
RESOURCES:
- Complete local and national coronavirus coverage here
- Follow us on Facebook and Twitter | Watch Boston 25 NOW
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/cmg/7QOJU3BNCJERBNKJC5LWTBYFLU.png)
