URGENT CALIFORNIA: Click to Oppose SB 866 Allowing Minor Consent to Vaccines Without Parents’ Knowledge

Published: Jan 25, 2022

Our Stand: At-A-Glance

  • Senator Pan has announced the development of the legislative Vaccine Work Group, where their goal is to develop “cohesive and comprehensive, evidence-based policies” to stop the spread of COVID-19 and other diseases while battling misinformation.
  • The first bill they announced is SB 866 Minors: Vaccine Consent, which would remove parental consent and “authorize a minor 12 years of age or older to consent to vaccines that meet specified federal agency criteria…” To note, California already allows minors 12 and older to consent to vaccines for sexually transmitted diseases, such as HPV and Hepatitis B.
  • SB 866 subverts the right and duty of parents to make informed decisions about whether or not their children should receive medical treatment. It additionally creates a structure of distrust between the parent, the child, and healthcare providers.
  • While some minors 12 and older may make rational, informed decisions, about other issues in their lives, others of the same age have varying levels of maturity. Furthermore, the significant changes in adolescent brains mean minors 12 and older are, more than at any other age, disproportionately swayed by peer pressure, lack of self-regulation and rewards. Over the past year, food and beverages, lottery tickets, peer pressure, and much more have been employed as incentives to push the COVID-19 vaccine. This preys on adolescents’ immature cognition and prevents them from making unbiased, informed decisions.
  • Minors may not know their full medical history and the potential risks of vaccination—they will not possess knowledge of what to look for if they do have an adverse reaction. If parents are unaware of their child’s vaccination status, treatment of a serious adverse reaction could very well be delayed, given that the parents couldn’t accurately convey their child’s medical history.
  • When vaccine providers make decisions for a minor, they’re annexing the role of a caring parent or guardian, who has specific knowledge of their individual child’s medical needs. But, under the Federal Public Readiness and Emergency Preparedness Act and the National Childhood Vaccine Injury Act, they also maintain zero liability if a child dies or suffers serious injuries directly from a vaccine. Clearly, this leaves unconsenting parents fully responsible for the care of their injured child.
  • Lastly, the bill “would not authorize the vaccine provider to provide any service that is otherwise outside the vaccine provider’s scope of practice.” By not limiting treatment during a vaccination visit, the bill allows for broad medical treatment for minors 12 and older during a visit where a vaccination is also administered, given that most pediatric vaccine providers are physicians or pharmacists.
  • Click to tell your local legislator that you oppose SB 866 Allowing Minor Consent to Vaccines Without Parents’ Knowledge.
  • Note: While we vehemently oppose this bill, over the years, A Voice for Choice Advocacy has discovered that opposing bills outright that are authored by unwavering legislators and supported by powerful organizations such as the California Medical Association is not an effective strategy. We will therefore oppose the bill unless amended and we ask you to do the same when meeting with your State Senator. You can read our full list of opposed amendments in Our Stand: Full Story, but our key focus areas are full liability—for injury or death—for the provider administering vaccines, a full medical history on the child, no bullying or bribing of the child, parental notification, and the age of consent to be increased to 16 years.

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This week, Senator Pan announced the development of the legislative Vaccine Work Group. Members of this group include Senaors Pan, Weiner, and Newman, as well as Assembly Members Weber, Wicks, Aguiar-Curry, and Low. Their goal is to develop “cohesive and comprehensive, evidence-based policies” to stop the spread of COVID-19 and other diseases while “battling misinformation.”

For months, A Voice for Choice Advocacy has sounded the warning that at least five BAD vaccine related bills are being considered for the 2022 legislative session. The first of those, SB 866, was introduced yesterday by key members of the Vaccine Work Group: Senators Wiener and Pan and Assembly Member Wicks, with Senator Josh Newman and Assembly Members Aguiar-Curry, Friedman, Low, Ting, and Weber as co-authors.

SB 866 would remove parental consent and “authorize a minor 12 years of age or older to consent to vaccines that meet specified federal agency criteria. The bill would authorize a vaccine provider, as defined, to administer a vaccine pursuant to the bill, but would not authorize the vaccine provider to provide any service that is otherwise outside the vaccine provider’s scope of practice.”

Note: CA already allows minors 12 years and older to consent to vaccines for sexually transmitted diseases, such as HPV and Hepatitis B. Rhode Island and South Carolina permit minors 16 years and older to consent to vaccines, Oregon permits minors 15 years and older, Alabama permits minors 14 years and older, and Washington D.C. permits minors 11 years and older.

The main issues with the bill are as follows:

  • The bill subverts the right and duty of parents to make informed decisions about whether or not their children should receive medical treatment, without any finding that the parent is unfit.
  • The bill creates a structure of distrust between the parent, the child, and healthcare providers.
  • While some minors 12 and older may make rational, informed decisions about other issues in their lives, others of the same age have varying levels of maturity. Furthermore, significant changes in adolescent brains mean minors 12 and older are, more than at any other age, disproportionately swayed by peer pressure, lack of self-regulation, and rewards. Over the past year, food and beverages, lottery tickets, peer pressure, and much more have been employed as incentives to push the COVID-19 vaccine. This preys adolescents’ immature cognition and prevents them from making unbiased, informed decisions.
  • Minors may not know their full medical history and the potential risks of vaccination, and they will not possess knowledge of what to look for if they do have an adverse reaction. If parents are unaware of their child’s vaccination status, treatment of a serious adverse reaction could very well be delayed, given that the parents couldn’t accurately convey their child’s medical history.
  • When vaccine providers make decisions for a minor, they’re annexing the role of a caring parent or guardian who has specific knowledge of their child’s medical needs. But, under the federal Public Readiness and Emergency Preparedness Act and the National Childhood Vaccine Injury Act, they also maintain zero liability if a child dies or suffers serious injuries directly from a vaccine. Clearly, this leaves unconsenting parents fully responsible for the care of their injured child.
  • If minors 12 and older have the right to consent to vaccines without their parents’ involvement, then these children should also have the right to decline vaccines without their parents’ involvement.
  • The bill “would not authorize the vaccine provider to provide any service that is otherwise outside the vaccine provider’s scope of practice.” By not limiting treatment during a vaccination visit, the bill allows for broad medical treatment for minors 12 and older during a visit where a vaccination is also administered, given that most pediatric vaccine providers are physicians or pharmacists.

While A Voice for Choice Advocacy vehemently oppose this bill, over the years, we have discovered that opposing bills outright that are authored by unwavering legislators and supported by powerful organizations such as the California Medical Association is not an effective strategy. We will therefore oppose the bill unless amended and we ask you to do the same when meeting with your State Senator. The additional language requested is:

  • Change the age of consent to vaccines to minors 16 years of age or older.
  • Mirror the San Francisco order, to ensure that all efforts are made to contact the parents prior to vaccination.
  • To require the vaccine provider to obtain complete medical history from the minor’s primary care provider, if they are not such provider, and to conduct a full physical examination and evaluation of the child prior to vaccinating, consistent with the relevant standard of care.
  • To require minors who do not have parental consent to be vaccinated in a physician’s office, not at a school clinic, mass vaccination site, pharmacy, reproductive care clinic, or other location.
  • To ensure that minors who do not have parental consent will in no way be bribed, bullied, or coerced to get a vaccination.
  • To require that the parents of minors who do not have parental consent be notified immediately after the vaccination is administered.
  • To require the vaccine provider to take on all financial liability for the treatment of any vaccine adverse reaction, injury, or death related to the vaccine administered.
  • To allow minors who do not have parental consent to not only have the ability to consent to vaccination without parental input, but also have the ability to decline vaccination without parental input.
  • To amend (c) so that it reads: “would not authorize the vaccine provider to provide any service that is otherwise outside the vaccine provider’s scope of practiceother than vaccination.”

Over the past seven years, A Voice for Choice Advocacy has established itself as the leading legislative organization lobbying for your health rights at the California Capitol. While A Voice for Choice Advocacy’s lobbying activity in the Capitol is important, your positive constituent relationships with your CA State Senator and Assembly Member and their staff are critical to assisting with A Voice for Choice Advocacy’s efforts.

Jill Hines

Directory of Advocacy
A former banker turned homeschool mom, Jill Hines began researching alternatives to conventional medicine in 2010 and what she discovered changed the trajectory of her life. She corrected a worrisome health issue, and embraced a natural approach to wellness. Advocating for informed consent and parental rights became a full-time mission when she joined the board of the Georgia Coalition for Vaccine Choice and later became the co-director of Health Freedom Louisiana. Due to her advocacy efforts during the COVID crisis, Jill was one of 25 Louisianans selected by Central City News as “a hero of the constitutional crisis.” She was also presented the Impact Award for Outstanding Public Service from the government watchdog organization Citizens for a New Louisiana. Jill now represents hundreds of millions of Americans who experienced censorship due to the Biden administration's efforts to suppress disfavored speech as a plaintiff in the landmark lawsuit Missouri v. Biden. Jill holds a marketing degree from Louisiana Tech University and now passionately “sells” health freedom full-time. Serving as Stand for Health Freedom’s advocacy director provides an incredible opportunity to advance the growing movement to preserve the sacred right to refuse unwanted medical interventions for ourselves and our children without fear of retribution.
“We have lived through a terrifying societal, psychological, and medical experiment which afforded us a knowledge that our forefathers tried to impart and we can no longer ignore: Our freedom is tenuous. For our children’s sake, the time is now to take a stand for health freedom.”

Chrissy Scott

Executive Assistant and Social Media Manager

A labor and delivery nurse with a lifelong passion for maternal and fetal health, Chrissy Scott left her job of 19 years after learning the truth about the harms caused by the medical system. In 2009, she was mandated by her employer to receive the H1N1 vaccine during her first trimester of pregnancy with her second child. She was assured that the vaccine was “safe and effective” for pregnant women, but her son was born with a kidney defect that could have been fatal. She didn’t connect the dots to vaccine injury until several years later when the declining health of her oldest son drove her to seek answers outside of allopathic medicine.

This personal journey ignited in her a new passion for truth and transparency in health care. As SHF’s Executive Assistant, Chrissy facilitates communication and local advocacy initiatives alongside Leah Wilson for their home state of Indiana. She also manages and creates graphics for SHF’s social media accounts and the website’s swag shop.

Chrissy earned her nursing degree from Anderson University and served her entire career at her local hospital. While she’s no longer a floor nurse, her five very active boys frequently test her nursing skills! She homeschools her children and has been co-owner of a successful home décor sign business with her sister.

“Parents, being the experts on their own children, are best suited to make decisions for the well-being of their family. To do this properly, they must be given full and accurate information and be free from force or coercion.”

Ellen Chappelle

Writer/Editor

Ellen Chappelle serves as SHF’s resident wordsmith. A seasoned writer and editor, she’s enthusiastic about ensuring that our content is clear, concise, and inspiring.

Ellen is most energized by working on projects that transform lives. A truth seeker as well as a journalist, she’s disturbed by the lack of accuracy in today’s media and determined to help share fact rather than fiction. And having found greater healing with alternative approaches, she’s also passionate about preserving our freedom to make informed health choices.

Past projects include serving as regional editor of a dog magazine, color and trend specialist for a small cosmetics company, arts columnist, newspaper reporter, ghostwriter, and creator of website content for artists and small businesses.

With a degree in journalism and theatre, Ellen is also a performer. She enjoyed singing and dancing on a cruise ship and traveling with a national musical theatre tour, as well as recording industrial videos, television commercials, and radio voiceovers. She also creates handcrafted jewelry in wire, chain maille, and fused glass.

“Despite what some would have us believe, the fact remains that this nation was founded on biblical principles by people who wanted freedom to worship God and live their lives without government involvement. It’s never been more critical to fight for those rights.”

LEAH WILSON

Executive Director and Co-founder

An attorney with a background in complex litigation and advocacy, Leah Wilson is passionate about children’s health and has researched and worked on child welfare issues for more than a decade.

The overmedication of children in foster care as a form of behavior management is what compelled Leah to become an advocate and foster parent. During her time as a court-appointed special advocate for abused and neglected children, Leah witnessed the rampant use of psychiatric drugs among foster kids. She also discovered that, in addition to many extensive requirements, the state had a policy that all foster children and foster families be fully vaccinated, without exception. Through her involvement in law, health and the foster care system, it became abundantly clear to Leah that the single most important issue affecting child welfare in the United States is the practice of one-size-fits-all medicine via medical mandates. This motivated Leah to expand her advocacy beyond foster care to all children nationwide and to start Stand for Health Freedom (SHF) in 2019.

A graduate of the Saint Louis University School of Law, Leah holds dual bachelor degrees in political science and Spanish from Indiana University. In addition to her advocacy work with SHF, Leah is the owner and former operations director of MaxLiving Indy, one of the largest natural health centers in the Midwest. She is also an educator on holistic health as well as a sought-after speaker on issues ranging from religious rights to greening your home.

“Parental rights and religious freedom are God-given natural rights that cannot arbitrarily be taken away by government authorities. Parents are the single most important factor in a child’s success; I stand in full support of this sacred relationship.”

Sayer JI

Director and Co-founder

Sayer Ji is a widely recognized researcher, author, lecturer, activist, and educator on natural health modalities. Among his many roles, he is an advisor to Stand for Health Freedom, a reviewer and editor of the International Journal of Human Nutrition and Functional Medicine, an advisory board member of the National Health Federation, a steering committee member of the Global GMO Free Coalition, and the co-founder and CEO of Systome Biomed Inc., a revolutionary scientific validation framework.

Most notably, Sayer is the founder of Greenmedinfo.com, the world’s most widely referenced, evidence-based natural health resource of its kind. He founded the platform in 2008 to provide an open access, evidence-based resource supporting natural and integrative modalities. Today, Greenmedinfo.com has more than a million visits per month, serving as a trusted resource on myriad health and wellness topics to physicians, healthcare practitioners, clinicians, researchers and consumers worldwide.

Sayer attended Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, where he studied under the notable American philosopher Dr. Bruce W. Wilshire. He received a Bachelor of Arts in philosophy in 1995, with a focus on the philosophy of science. His new book, Regenerate: Unlocking Your Body’s Radical Resilience through the New Biology, was released in March 2020 and is an Amazon bestseller.

“I truly believe that education will be our greatest shield against accelerating the erosion of civil liberties, including the right to bodily sovereignty, as well as the greatest catalyst for positive change on this planet moving forward.”

Bailey Kuykendoll

Associate Director

Designer and visual marketer Bailey Kuykendoll began advocating for health and religious freedom and parental rights in 2014 after learning she was pregnant. A self-described skeptic, she’s not afraid to ask questions and do copious amounts of research to reach her own conclusions.

She’s also not afraid of hard work. As SHF’s Relationship Manager, Bailey truly keeps the organizational boat afloat. Working closely with health freedom advocates in each state, she ensures that SHF has campaigns for health-freedom-related bills and petitions on our website and across social media, spreading the word to encourage people to contact their legislators. She builds campaigns, graphics, website pages, and relationships.

Bailey earned a design degree from Harrington Institute of Design in 2008. She then served as a production assistant on several shows for HGTV, followed by working behind the scenes on the X Factor, small indie films, music videos, and documentaries. Bailey joined Health Freedom Florida after moving to the East Coast, becoming co-president of the grassroots organization in 2019. While at Health Freedom Florida, she successfully filed a state bill designed to stop discrimination based on your health status. She joined SHF in the fall of 2020.

“God placed a calling on my heart back in 2008 to be a part of something bigger for Him. Twelve years later, the opportunity came knocking to help others lean into their natural-born rights and take a stand for themselves and their families. I knew this is where I was called to be, and I have never looked back.”

Valerie Borek

POLICY ANALYST

Valerie Borek is a passionate advocate for health rights and family privacy. A mother of two with degrees in law and biochemistry, she is perfectly positioned to lead SHF advocates through complex health-rights policy. Her work is guided by a love for American values, uncovering truth, and a passion for empowering others. Valerie has served as SHF’s policy analyst since 2021.

Valerie’s understanding of the value of freedom to make one’s own health care choices is not just academic. Health freedom has kept her boys alive and thriving. Her choice to have home births jump-started her advocacy for health privacy. Her eldest son survived a rare and deadly cancer because her family was able to navigate medical care while holding onto values that were sometimes at odds with recommendations.

Before joining SHF, Valerie specialized in health and parenting rights at her boutique law firm, especially surrounding birth and vaccine rights. She advocated for informed consent in health care and transparent food labeling in her state. She helped found the Birth Rights Bar Association and was honored to present their argument to the Delaware Supreme Court that midwifery is not the practice of medicine, in support of a trailblazing midwife.

“Health is the foundation of how we show up in this world to love, serve, and create. Americans are blessed to live in a country that gets stronger the more we protect fundamental rights, like informed consent and privacy, so individuals and families can thrive.”

Mary Katherine LaCroix

DIRECTOR OF DEVELOPMENT AND NONPROFIT ADMINISTRATION

Mary Katherine LaCroix became involved with SHF as a volunteer in 2019 when the religious exemption for childhood vaccines was at risk in her home state of New Jersey. She believes strongly that parents have the responsibility for their children’s health, education, and faith formation and that only they have the right to make medical decisions and manage their care.

She has worked in fundraising for more than 25 years at various educational, cultural, human services, and political organizations. A graduate of the University of Scranton, she holds a degree in History and English Literature.

Mary Katherine is thrilled to have this opportunity to work with and help grow SHF, believing that together we can achieve even greater impact in protecting our rights and caring for our loved ones. She enjoys spending time with her husband, two children and large extended family, as well as volunteering to support the special needs community.

“Parents are taught that they must trust the experts. That’s what we did, until we learned that the experts can be wrong and don’t always know what is best for your child. Parents should instead feel empowered by their natural, God-given ability to advocate and care for their children. SHF is here to give them the tools to do just that.”

Sheila Ealey

Political Analyst

Dr. Sheila Lewis Ealey is the founder and former director of the Creative Learning Center of Louisiana, a therapeutic day school for children who are on the autism spectrum or struggling with other nonverbal intellectual disabilities. The wife of a former U.S. Coast Guard Officer, she is also the mother of four children. Her son was diagnosed with severe autism spectrum disorder at 18 months. He is now a young man and considered moderate and emerging.

Sheila and her twins were featured in the documentary “Vaxxed.” She has traveled extensively, advocating for medical freedom. She continues to educate disenfranchised parents about their fundamental rights to religious and philosophical exemptions, their ability to live sustainably on a limited budget, and the importance of nutrition and biomedical interventions for optimum health with autism. She also writes individual homeschool curriculums for parents of children with autism or intellectual disorders. Sheila is a trustee for the Autism Trust, USA, and on the board of directors of Children’s Health Defense.

Over the past 20 years, she has educated herself to use natural healing modalities for the body and brain. Her formal education includes degrees in communication, special education curriculum, and a doctorate in Educational Leadership in Special Education. Sheila serves as an assistant content advisor and political analyst for SHF.

“It is not the Constitution’s job to protect our liberties, as it is not a philosophical document but a legal one. Its purpose is to limit the powers and authority of our federal government in hopes of preventing an intrusion upon our unalienable rights. We are obliged to maintain our government within its limits.”

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