(Radio Iowa) - The Iowa House Education Committee has approved a bill that would eliminate all vaccination requirements for students in Iowa's public K-through-12 schools.
Under current law, parents must provide the school nurse with proof their child has been vaccinated against polio, diphtheria, whooping cough, tetanus, measles, Hepatitis B and chicken pox. A vaccination against meningitis is required for students in 7th through 12th grade. Republican Representative Brooke Boden of Indianola says while parents may seek a medical or religious exemption from those requirements, it's time to give parents the right to make vaccination decisions.
Representative Heather Matson, a Democrat from Ankeny, says childhood vaccines save lives and the bill is dangerous. Iowa medical groups say schools are places where illnesses spread quickly and ending the vaccination requirements will lead to more Iowans getting sick with preventable diseases.