ASSEMBLYWOMAN GONZALEZ COAUTHORS MEASURE TO BOOST VACCINATION RATES

Proposed legislation would eliminate California's personal belief exemption for vaccinations

February 5, 2015 (Sacramento)--California State Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez (D-San Diego) has joined State Senators Dr. Richard Pan and Ben Allen to propose legislation that would eliminate the personal belief exemption for vaccinations in California.

California is already facing 92 documented measles cases this year, including dozens traced to an outbreak at Disneyland. The year 2014 saw 644 cases nationwide – more than triple any other year since 2000 when the disease was declared eradicated – and new cases already this year threaten to shatter that record once again.

“As a mother, I know the decisions we make about our children's healthcare are deeply personal," said Gonzalez. “While I respect that fundamental right to make medical decisions for your own family, when a parent's decision to ignore science and medical fact puts other children at risk, we can't as a state condone it.”

In California, 2.5% of kindergartners are unvaccinated because of the personal belief exemption to vaccination. In many communities, the vaccination rates have now dropped to levels that put the health of the entire population at risk, including San Diego where a recent iNewsource report found that nearly 8% of kindergartners were not up to date on their vaccinations, risking the 'herd immunity' that protects the general population.

"It is irrefutable fact that immunizations save lives. But as more parents choose to not immunize their children, our entire community is put at risk," Gonzalez continued. "Vaccinations are a social obligation to maintaining public health, and we must re-commit to that responsibility."

For more information on this pending legislation or to interview Assemblywoman Gonzalez, contact Evan McLaughlin at (916) 319-2080 or (619) 850-2790.

Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez represents the 80th Assembly District, which includes Chula Vista, National City and the San Diego neighborhoods of City Heights, Barrio Logan, Paradise Hills, San Ysidro and Otay Mesa. For more information, visit http://asmdc.org/members/a80/.