Dr. Lisa Costello: As a pediatrician and mom, I oppose House Bill 5105 (Opinion)

If there is one thing I know, both as a pediatrician and mother of a toddler, it’s that we West Virginians love our children fiercely.

If you are a parent, grandparent or caregiver reading this, I know you care. This is why I want to alert you about a bill moving in the West Virginia legislature right now that would undermine children’s health and safety in ways that would be harmful for us all. And I want to ask for your help in stopping House Bill 5105.

West Virginia leads the nation in strong immunization requirements for school entry. Our strong school policies have resulted in our state having some of the nation’s highest immunization rates, protecting children, adolescents and our communities from preventable diseases. Neighboring states with weaker school-entry immunization policies are currently suffering outbreaks of preventable diseases such as measles, while West Virginia has seen no such outbreaks.

Yet, House Bill 5105 is trying to remove immunization requirements entirely for many students in private and parochial schools and in virtual public school; and it allows non-medical exemptions from immunization requirements in schools and childcare centers. When people can opt out of immunizations easily for non-medical reasons, that results in lower overall immunization rates. Even a small decrease in immunization rates can result in devastating outbreaks in communities.