O’Scanlon Commends Protesters’ Success Stopping Vaccination Bill

Senator Declan O’Scanlon (R-13) issued the following statement today after legislation to repeal the religious exemption for mandatory vaccines stalled in the Senate:

“The failure of the vaccine bill to pass today is a case of Democracy working as it should.  There was enough opposition to this version of the bill to block it.  I applaud the opponents for their tremendous, ultimately successful effort.

“The question now is what happens next. We should all hope that the issue of resurgent, vaccine-preventable diseases will simply go away, as has been predicted by the folks who opposed the bill.  God willing that’s the case. But our experience to date suggests that’s not likely.

“With that in mind we should work to bring all sides together to discuss what might be a path forward that can both pass the legislature and ensure we maintain high vaccination rates so as to protect some of the most vulnerable among us, as has been my goal all along.  I stand ready to participate in that effort.”