A new bill introduced to the
Connecticut
state legislature would allow children ages 12 and up to receive vaccines without parental consent.
Democratic
state Rep. Kevin Ryan introduced the measure, which would amend Connecticut’s general statutes to give children 12 and older the right to access ”
vaccinations
without the consent of a parent or guardian.”
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“The legislation proposed is an issue that has been an important concern for my constituent. As their representative, it’s my duty to express their requests and ensure their concerns have been taken seriously, especially on a healthcare issue,” Ryan
told
WTNH.
Currently, children under the age of 18 in Connecticut need a parent or guardian to give written or verbal consent to receive medical care, including vaccination.
State Rep. Holly Cheeseman (R) expressed concerns to WTNH about what could happen if a child had an adverse side effect to a vaccine and the guardian was not aware they had received the shot.
The proposed bill was referred Tuesday to the state legislature’s Joint Committee on Public Health, which will decide whether to move the legislation forward.
The majority of states require parental consent for vaccinations for children 18 and under, though many states allow certain minors to self-consent for a vaccine, such as if they are emancipated or married,
according to
Kaiser Family Foundation. Oregon allows children 15 years and older to consent to medical care, including vaccinations.
A local law in Washington, D.C., went into effect back in 2021, allowing children ages 11 and older to get a vaccine if they are capable of meeting the informed consent standard and the vaccination is recommended by the
Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices
.
Last October, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s advisory committee voted to include the COVID-19 vaccine on the 2022 Child & Adolescent Immunization Schedule, which is seen as a recommendation for parents and health providers on when certain vaccines should be administered. Other vaccinations recommended by the committee include the polio, measles, mumps, and rubella, and HPV shots.
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Roughly 8.4 million children ages 12 to 17 have yet to receive their first COVID-19 vaccine,
according to
the American Academy of Pediatrics.
The CDC reported that vaccination coverage for four state-required vaccines among kindergartners at public and private schools fell by one percentage point to roughly 93% in the 2021-2022 school year, continuing a steady decline in childhood immunization since the start of the pandemic.
