From WisPolitics.com/WisBusiness.com …
— Legislation being circulated by GOP authors would create a new requirement for how schools and child care centers provide information on immunization waivers.
Sen. Rachael Cabral-Guevara of Appleton and Rep. Lindee Rae Brill of Sheboygan Falls recently sent a cosponsorship memo to other lawmakers on the bill. They reference a “lack of transparency” around immunization waivers for children enrolled in schools, nursery schools and child care centers.
State law allows parents or guardians to waive immunization requirements for their child to attend a school, child care center or nursery school for “medical, religious, or personal conviction” reasons as long as they submit a written statement.
But the bill authors say many families aren’t made aware of this law while enrolling their child, arguing some institutions don’t provide “clear and consistent” procedures for how to submit such a waiver.
“This lack of transparency can create confusion and unnecessary barriers for parents, as well as increase administrative burden on schools when immunization documentation is incomplete or delayed,” they wrote.
Current Wisconsin law requires that when these institutions notify a student, parent, guardian or legal custodian of the immunization requirement, they must also inform them about their right to waive that requirement for the specified reasons.
Under the bill being circulated, the school or child care center would have to provide a procedure for presenting the waiver with “each health-related form” that must be completed before the child is enrolled or admitted, according to the Legislative Reference Bureau.
Authors say the legislation would “reduce confusion, support parental rights, and create a more consistent process” statewide.
The cosponsorship deadline is Aug. 4.
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