SB276: Robert Kennedy, Jr., ICAN Founder Del Bigtree to Speak At California State Capitol Parents Rally To Protect Patient-Doctor Relationships, Legal Medical Exemptions From Vaccination

SACRAMENTO, Calif., April 10, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Informed Consent Action Network conservatively predicts a crowd of 500 to 1000 people for a rally today at the north steps of the California State Capitol, in opposition of SB276, which would restrict a doctor's ability to write valid medical exemptions for medically fragile children. 

Activist Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., and ICAN Founder Del Bigtree will speak at the event, organized by Parents United 4 Kids.

Parents, doctors, nurses, legislators and other concerned citizens are expected to mobilize and push back against the legislation, which aims to put the authority to approve medical exemptions into the hands of one appointed State officer. 

"This legislation violates patient-doctor relationships and intends to legislate the practice of medicine," says Bigtree. "SB276 comes after the highly contentious bill, SB277, was passed in 2015 with the understanding that a broad medical exemption, at a doctor's discretion, would be protected."

State Senator Richard Pan, who is behind the bill, previously warned against legislating the practice of medicine in his opposition to SB201, related to intersex surgery. 

Governor Jerry Brown, in his SB277 signing statement said that, "SB277, while requiring that school children should be vaccinated, explicitly provides an exception when a physician believes that circumstances, including but not limited to, family medical history, for which the physician does not recommend immunization…."

"We were concerned when SB277 passed, this would be the next challenge to medical freedom, even as Richard Pan promised that would not be the case," says Stefanie Fetzer, manager of Parents United 4 Kids. "We've been ready for this moment."

SOURCE Informed Consent Action Network