Let's be clear RE: religious exemptions and private schools

[momto1QT]

OK everybody, listen up...I have been reading so many posts lately where the same question keeps coming up re: Do private schools have to accept religious exemptions to vaccines? Many people seem to think that private schools may accept/reject religious exemptions depending on source of funding.

Just a thought... but I think many are confusing federal anti-discrimination laws with public health laws.

Title IV of the Civil rights act of 1964 prohibits discrimination on basis of race, color, sex, RELIGION, or national origin by public, elementary, and secondary schools and public institutions of higher learning. SO, if a school is genuinely private it is not covered by Title IV. If, HOWEVER, it receives any federal funds, it is subject to the federal statutes prohibiting discrimination by federal fund recipients. (This is where I think the idea of funding and religious exemptions is stemming from.)

With that being said, regarding public health laws, please read Long Island's posts! In short: Whether a public or private school accepts or rejects a religious exemption is based on the state's public health laws, IRRESPECTIVE of what type of funding they receive. In all that I've read public health laws apply to BOTH public and private schools. Because private schools are bound by the mandate requirements of the state, they act as agents of the state in vaccine compliance. To be in compliance with the requirements of this statute, a private school must accept a religious exemption in place of a certificate of immunization.

A private school's only role in vaccine compliance is record keeping for the department of health.

I hope this helps!

[amnesiac]

The laws in my state pertaining to vax requirements for school entry are a part of our public education code, not a general public health code, so I'm not sure how that would impact private schools. And those pertaining to vaxes for daycare are specifically within the code regulating child care facilities, which doesn't even apply to all child care providers.

[grisandole]

Originally Posted by momto1QT

OK everybody, listen up...I have been reading so many posts lately where the same question keeps coming up re: Do private schools have to accept religious exemptions to vaccines? Many people seem to think that private schools may accept/reject religious exemptions depending on source of funding.

Just a thought... but I think many are confusing federal anti-discrimination laws with public health laws.

Title IV of the Civil rights act of 1964 prohibits discrimination on basis of race, color, sex, RELIGION, or national origin by public, elementary, and secondary schools and public institutions of higher learning. SO, if a school is genuinely private it is not covered by Title IV. If, HOWEVER, it receives any federal funds, it is subject to the federal statutes prohibiting discrimination by federal fund recipients. (This is where I think the idea of funding and religious exemptions is stemming from.)

With that being said, regarding public health laws, please read Long Island's posts! In short: Whether a public or private school accepts or rejects a religious exemption is based on the state's public health laws, IRRESPECTIVE of what type of funding they receive. In all that I've read public health laws apply to BOTH public and private schools. Because private schools are bound by the mandate requirements of the state, they act as agents of the state in vaccine compliance. To be in compliance with the requirements of this statute, a private school must accept a religious exemption in place of a certificate of immunization.

A private school's only role in vaccine compliance is record keeping for the department of health.

I hope this helps!

My understanding is that here in AZ, all schools, public or private, must accept the exemptions, at least that's what I got from reading the state's website about vaxes. It isn't funding related.

Also, any home daycare that is licensed by the state must accept the exemptions.

I'm guessing this varies from state to state, though.

[LongIsland]

Originally Posted by amnesiac

The laws in my state pertaining to vax requirements for school entry are a part of our public education code, not a general public health code, so I'm not sure how that would impact private schools. And those pertaining to vaxes for daycare are specifically within the code regulating child care facilities, which doesn't even apply to all child care providers.

Public health law prevails over child care and private school regulations. For instance, in New York, when the law refers to "school," it means all schools public or private, including daycares.

Immunizations provisions under any state's public health law are for school entry - all schools. If it didn't impact private schools in your state, then every private school would have no immunization requirement.

If a school or daycare is requiring a child to comply with state immunization requirements, then they cannot ignore the exemption provisions of the very same law. Can a public school district or private school make it difficult and deny and/or challenge an exemption - it happens. Public schools are obviously publicly funded and they deny exemptions all the time. Private schools enjoy the ability to selectively admit and therefore can deny an exemption as well.

[LongIsland]

Originally Posted by amnesiac

And those pertaining to vaxes for daycare are specifically within the code regulating child care facilities, which doesn't even apply to all child care providers.

That's right, but if the Dept. of Health is requiring that particular child care facility to comply with public health law, then the exemption provisions would apply.

A facility,

whether public or private, whether it's a hospital or school,

cannot mandate immunization for the health dept., but ignore the fact that there are medical, religious and philosophical exemptions to immunizatioin in the health code.

[Mavournin]

This has cleared some confusion up for me. Thanks!

Maybe we need a sticky...

[amnesiac]

Public health law prevails over child care and private school regulations.

That's right, but if the Dept. of Health is requiring that particular child care facility to comply with public health law, then the exemption provisions would apply.

Here the specific health laws are a part of the regulations not something separate to prevail over them. But our child care facility law does specifically state that "no immunization may be required for admission to a
facility regulated under this chapter if a person applying for a
child's admission submits one of the following affidavits." So any regulated child care facility must comply with that standard, but there are lots of unregulated programs and I think the way that phrase is worded makes a big difference. I have no idea what laws would apply to private schools.

[LongIsland]

Originally Posted by amnesiac

Here the specific health laws are a part of the regulations not something separate to prevail over them.

A state's public health law is in fact separate from private school and child care regulations.

Public health law may be included in child care regulations as they pertain to local law regarding immunizations, but public health code and child care regulations are separate.

[amnesiac]

A state's public health law is in fact separate from private school and child care regulations.

What I'm saying is that our separate public health laws here do not speak to this issue.

[LongIsland]

You mean your public health laws don't address exemption specifically for child care or private school, but that it's addressed in the regulations? Sorry if I'm misunderstanding

[amnesiac]

Yes. The separate health & safety code specifically addresses vax requirements & exemptions for other things like hospitals, nursing homes, detention facilities and it outlines control measures that may be used in the event of "public health disasters." But vax requirements & exemptions for schools are addressed under the education code & daycare is under the human resources code as a part of the regulations for those specific entities.

[LongIsland]

Got it - thank you!

I'm surprised that schools aren't mentioned in your state's health code though!

[momto1QT]

Hmmm....I was just trying to be helpful in posting this thread.

amnesiac, what state do you live in?
Obviously, since vaccine mandates are state determined, vaccine laws may vary from state to state.

I just wanted to make the point that, to the best of my knowledge, funding has no bearing on whether or not a private schools will accept religious exemptions. I am quite sure that for THOSE states in which public health laws do apply to schools(which I honestly think would be true in nearly every state, as school entry is just used as a checkpoint to make sure everyone is in compliance with the law), it includes ALL schools whether they are public, private, parochial, etc. I agree with LI: " Immunization provisions under any state's public health law are for school entry-all schools. If a school or daycare is requiring a child to comply with state immunization requirements, then they cannot ignore exemption provisions of the very same law." Period.

[amnesiac]

You know what, I was mistaken. I was looking in our statutes & that's the way it is there. I'm so dingy right now that I neglected to look it up in the administrative code - the health services title within the admin code does state that the requirements are for all child care facilities and both public/private schools & the exemptions are right there in the same title. So there's a lesson for ya - always look in both places.

Sorry to be such a dumb today

[LongIsland]

It did seem a little odd that schools weren't in there - glad you found it!