Ahhh, the Chicken Pox Vaccine. My youngest 2 (not so “young” at 20 and 17) both HAD the chicken pox (about 15 1/2 yrs ago) just like their older three sibling did (oldest brought it home to numbers 2 and 3).
When sons 4 and 5 were entered school, all we had to do was state they had the disease (the shot was NEW and not mandatory when they entered elementary school). Middle school same thing. Son number 4 had an at graduation time from HS as his inoculations were NOT up to date (no CP vac but ALL other vacs given on time. I had to MAKE A NOTORIZED statement to keep in his file that he had in fact HAD the chicken pox. A copy of that statement was NOT good enough for his college (I had to have a special exemption given for him to live in dorm w/o the CP shot on his record.
The spring after my run in w/his college health dept (and the regs of the State of Ohio!) an outbreak of chicken pox hit our HS (right before the prom) and proof of vaccination was MANDATORY to attend the Prom (or school). Our youngest was now a Sophomore. Our school nurse accepted my statement (the one I had notorized for his older brother as my acknowledgment that infact my son had “natural immunity).
But no so fast! The PA STATE Health Dept stepped in and said the only ones exempt from CP vacc were those who refuse vaccination were those who are exempted for religious purposes or those who could present blood work that should CP titters. Blood to be done at OUR expense (anyone think my insurance company would pay ANY of that?)
So what happened, I emphatically stated (after I did my OWN research) that he would NOT take the vaccine (remember CP causes shingles later in life, and as a full generation has NOT reached shingles age I was NOT exposing my kid to unnecessary long term health risks) and if the PA Health Dept wanted to verify my son’s immunity THEY could provide the blood draw and lab work or the school district could cyber school him for last few weeks of school. As I was pleading my case in that fashion, local media picked up on the banned from the Prom angle of the story, and one of the parents of a girl (who had no doubt 1000s tied up in Prom prep) who is an attorney went to Court to get an injunction. Fun times.
The State deferred to the school district, and the SD solicitor “made it all go away.”
Just a small slice of a STATE mandating one size fits all health mandate...so lets all be happy the Feds have taken on even MORE!
First paragraph is wonky due to stupid auto word fill...grrrr...my phone hates me sometimes.
Oh for Pete’s sake, what college in Ohio