The bad vaccine bill we alerted you to last week, House Bill 522, received a favorable recommendation from the House Health Committee and it is now scheduled for a vote on May 18, 2019.
Even if you have called before, take a minute and call your State Representative to urge him or her to vote NO on H.B. 522.
H.B. 522 would expand the current vaccine-tracking system in Alabama called ImmPrint. ImmPrint already tracks individuals’ personal medical decisions on vaccination without their knowledge or consent. But current law only encourages health care providers to provide information to the tracking system. H. B. 522 would force all health care practitioners to provide their patients’ vaccine records to the tracking system, including historical data for people of all ages.
Your permission is not required for your private vaccine medical records to be tracked, and the information is never purged. Vaccine-tracking systems are a violation of medical privacy!
All Alabama residents who want to protect privacy and freedom in vaccine choices need to act now!
Read the bill here: http://alisondb.legislature.state.al.us/alison/SESSBillStatusResult.ASPX?BILL=HB522&WIN_TYPE=BillResult
TAKE ACTION
1) Call or email your Alabama State Representative and urge them to oppose H.B. 522.
You can find out who represents you here: http://capwiz.com/state-al/home/ (You want to contact your State Rep, not your U.S. Rep.)
Calls are more effective than emails, and take only a few minutes! See some suggested talking points, below,
after the next action item.
SAMPLE MESSAGE FOR CALLS & EMAILS
Use this to help you draft your own personalized comments about why this matters to you.
“Hi, my name is _____ and I’m from [city/town].
I am calling to urge Representative ______ to protect medical privacy
and vote no on H.B. 522.
This bill would expand the current vaccine-tracking system in Alabama by forcing all vaccine records into ImmPrint, including historical data for people of all ages.
The CDC has acknowledged that this sort of tracking is designed to identify areas of “undervaccination” so they can be “addressed” and brought into “compliance” – in other words, to create pressure on people to get vaccinated, despite their medical issues or religious objections. (https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm6133a2.htm)
Tracking systems are in direct conflict with the principles of medical privacy under federal medical privacy laws and HIPPA provides no protection.
As a constituent, I urge Representative _____ to vote no on H.B. 522. Thank you.”
Talking Points:
Keep your call or email short! Pick the 2 or 3 talking points that are most important to you, and be sure to explain why this issue matters to you personally.
- Alabama’s current tracking system already raises medical privacy concerns since people don’t have to be informed or consent before their information is reported. H.B. 522 would make it worse because it would force all vaccine records into the tracking system, including historical data.
- HIPPA provides no privacy for the records in this system. http://www.alabamapublichealth.gov/Immunization/assets/HIPAA_Immunization_Letter.pdf
- There are concerns that information provided in vaccine registries could be used to refuse services such as school, insurance, or employment in the future.
- Supporters of vaccine tracking systems claim they are a way to protect patients by guaranteeing patients don’t receive multiple doses of the same vaccinations by different providers. According to CDC’s own statements, though, it’s clear that one purpose of these registries is to create pressure on people who are unvaccinated or partially vaccinated.
- CDC openly stated that vaccine registries are a tool to identify areas of “undervaccination” so they can be “addressed” and brought into “compliance.” https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm6133a2.htm
- Using Immunization Information Systems costs states millions of dollars. The money spent on vaccine tracking systems would be better spent to address actual health care (rather than tracking) and the many other needs of Alabama residents.
Liz Doonan says
The right to choose to vaccinate our children is a religious one and must remain a protected freedom in Alabama and The United States on the whole.
Please consider how true this is.