(The Center Square) – A Washington bill that would add new language to existing state law about “appropriate measures” regarding vaccines to control the spread of communicable diseases received lopsided testimony in opposition during its public hearing before the House Health Care & Wellness Committee.
Among the criticism cited by opponents was what they considered to be vague bill language, potential for abuse of power of power, and how it might strip local health jurisdictions of their ability to make decisions most appropriate for their regions.
Sponsored by Health Care & Wellness Chair Rep. Dan Bronoske, D-Lakewood, House Bill 1531 would add new language to state law stating that “it is the policy of the state that public health responses to address communicable diseases be guided by the best available science on the safety and efficacy of evidence-based measures to control the spread of such diseases, including immunizations and vaccines.”
It also states that “state and local health officials must, within available resources, implement and promote evidence-based, appropriate measures to control the spread of communicable diseases, including vaccines. The state and its political subdivisions may not enact statutes, ordinances, rules, or policies that prohibit the implementation and promotion of such measures.”
At Friday’s public hearing, Bronoske said he introduced the bill in response to local health departments expressing concerns over “some policies in other states that basically prohibited the local health departments from going out and sharing quality information with the general public. I’m talking about things that we’ve taken for granted for a very long time, flu vaccines, shingles vaccines, trying to get our senior citizens and vulnerable folks to take the best precautionary measures for communicable disease. I hope to rebuild public confidence in our public health system.”
However, many of those testifying during the public hearing said the bill would have the exact opposite effect, with Informed Choice Washington Director Bob Reynolds saying it “would increase distrust the public would have in the next outbreak. Who decides what’s the best science? Perhaps most importantly, the bill does not solve a stated problem.”
Reynolds also questioned why there was an emergency clause, which means the bill would take effect immediately and does not allow for a referendum by the voters.
One state official to testify in favor of the bill was Gov. Bob Ferguson’s Senior Health Policy Advisor Caitlin Safford, who said the “governor believes it is important for Washingtonians to have access to accurate health information to aid in health care decision making for themselves and their family. Public health education should be readily available statewide, and our public health officials should be allowed to carry out their public duty of educating their communities with evidence-based information.”
Yet, Jefferson County Health Officer Dr. Allison Berry said allowing local officials to decide best practices is essential for maintaining trust among their communities. “The counties I serve are rural and politically often [have] a deep-seated distrust in centralized government. Despite that, our public health department has been able to build strong and sustained trust in our work and the information that we put out. We ask you to help protect our ability to continue to do this critical work to protect our communities.”
HB 1531 is currently not scheduled for any further committee action.
