Activists want anti-vaccine amendment in Ohio Constitution [View all]

[Nevilledog]

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https://ohiocapitaljournal.com/2022/07/06/activists-want-anti-vaccine-amendment-in-ohio-constitution/

State politicians advanced an effort Tuesday to place anti-vaccination language onto a general election ballot, which would leave the fate of vaccine mandates in Ohio in voters’ hands.

If passed, Ohio would become the only state in the nation with an explicit ban of vaccine mandates in its constitution. It would mark a major step backward for public health, dampen an already sluggish COVID-19 vaccination effort in Ohio, and nix a practice of mandating vaccination that traces back through early American history.

The Ohio Ballot Board — a bipartisan panel controlled by Republicans — allowed organizers of the “Medical Right to Refuse” amendment to begin gathering the 443,000 voters’ signatures required to place the referendum on a ballot. Organizers said they’re hoping to put the issue to voters in May 2023.

The proposal covers all vaccines, not just COVID-19. It contains two basic elements:

* “An individual’s right to refuse any medical procedure, treatment, injection, vaccine, prophylactic, pharmaceutical, or medical device shall be absolute.”

*“No law, rule, regulation, person, employer, entity, or healthcare provider shall require, mandate or coerce any person to receive or use a medical procedure, treatment, injection, vaccine, prophylactic, pharmaceutical, or medical device nor shall the aforementioned discriminate against the individual who exercises this right.”

If enacted, the law could force changes in several institutions that require vaccination. For instance, the Ohio National Guard requires a broad range of vaccinations from its troops; Ohio k-12 schools and colleges require vaccination against COVID-19 and other diseases as a term of enrollment (although broad exemptions can be invoked); some health care providers require their care personnel to receive vaccinations; some employers require them as well.

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