What's happening
This bill requires New York to create a standardized medical exemption form for school immunizations, broadening provider eligibility and limiting additional requirements.
Why it matters
Expands who can issue exemptions. By allowing nurse practitioners and physician’s assistants (in addition to physicians) to complete medical exemption forms, the bill increases access for families who may not have a regular physician or face provider shortages.
Limits state discretion and local school barriers. The bill prohibits the Department of Health and other agencies from adding extra requirements or conditions for exemption approval, reducing the risk of inconsistent or burdensome processes at the school or district level.
Standardizes and clarifies documentation. The required exemption form includes specific information (diagnosis/reason, provider certification, etc.), aiming to reduce confusion, ensure uniformity across the state, and potentially limit arbitrary rejections of exemption requests.
May impact public health oversight. By narrowing the grounds for review and oversight of exemptions, the bill could make it easier for students to attend school without immunizations, which could have implications for herd immunity and disease risk in schools.
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Who cares
Parents and guardians of children seeking medical immunization exemptions
The bill would make a completed provider certification filed with the child's school serve as an exemption from school immunization requirements.
Physicians, nurse practitioners and physician assistants
The bill would authorize all three provider groups to certify exemptions and require them to complete and file the standardized form when they believe immunization may harm a child's health.
Schools
Schools would receive a standardized medical immunization exemption form that could include the child's medical reason, diagnosis or condition and supporting documentation.
State Department of Health and other state agencies
The health commissioner would have to develop the form, and state agencies, boards and commissions would be barred from imposing additional conditions on medical immunization exemptions for school admission.
Headline styles
Standardize Vaccine Exemption Form
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
Assembly Member · Assembly District 111
No co-sponsors yet.
History
- Referred to health
- Referred to health
Full text
2 pagesUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
1153
2025-2026 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
January 9, 2025
Introduced by M. of A. SANTABARBARA -- read once and referred to the Committee on Health
AN ACT to amend the public health law, in relation to a standardized form for medical exemption from required immunizations
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. Subdivision 8 of section 2164 of the public health law, as amended by chapter 401 of the laws of 2015, is amended to read as follows:
8. The commissioner shall develop a standardized medical immunization exemption request form for school use. If any physician, nurse practitioner or physician's assistant licensed to practice medicine in this state [certifies] completes the required exemption form stating that such immunization may be detrimental to a child's health, the requirements of this section shall be inapplicable until such immunization is found no longer to be detrimental to the child's health by the child's physician, nurse practitioner or physician's assistant. The department or any other state agency, board or commission may not require any other condition or requirement for the medical exemption to immunization or immunizations provided for in this section for school admission.
§ 2. Subdivision 8-a of section 2164 of the public health law is renumbered subdivision 8-b and a new subdivision 8-a is added to read as follows:
8-a. Any physician, nurse practitioner or physician's assistant who believes that such immunization may be detrimental to the child's health must complete and file with the child's school the medical immunization exemption request form that may include but not be limited to the following information: Medical Immunization Exemption Request Form
(a) Name(s) of parent, parents or guardian:
(b) Name of child:
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD01170-01-5
(c) Child's birthdate:
(d) Child's home address:
(e) Medical reason, diagnosis and/or condition of which deems immunization detrimental to the child's health with corresponding medical documentation:
(f) I hereby certify that immunization against (poliomyelitis, mumps, measles, diptheria, rubella, varicella, Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib), pertussis, tetanus, pneumococcal disease, influenza, meningococcal disease and hepatitis B) may be detrimental to the child's health. The date and signature of the physician, nurse practitioner or physician's assistant shall appear here. This certification, once provided to the child's school, shall serve as an exemption to section 2164 of the public health law.
§ 3. This act shall take effect on the thirtieth day after it shall have become a law.
Reflowed for reading: line numbers and page breaks removed. Cite the official text.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.