Legal Precedent for Vaccine Religious Exemptions
As it turns out, for the majority of U.S. residents, most of the precedent for vaccine religious exemptions is precedent from New York federal district courts and a handful of state appellate courts and serves only as persuasive precedent.
Don’t discount the value of persuasive precedent, though. In many instances, it carries weight sufficient to clarify your rights under state law and the U.S. Constitution to ensure getting the exemption.
However, where persuasive precedent directly contradicts state law rather than serving merely to clarify it, its application may be more tenuous. For example, some state laws require membership in an organized religion with tenets opposed to immunizations in order to qualify for a vaccine religious exemption. [1]
Local officials may be bound by such laws despite the fact that opinions from courts in other jurisdictions have held similar laws to be unconstitutional since the rulings in other states are not binding. (Curiously, then, rights under our one U.S. Constitution can vary from state to state where courts in different states have interpreted its application differently on the same issue.)
Can the State Reject My Exemption Claim?
The ease or difficulty of exercising an exemption right can vary with differences in the wording of each state’s laws. For example, some states allow the state to question whether or not a claimed religious belief is truly religious or sincerely held.
Where this is the case, attempts to exercise a religious exemption may be scrutinized and exemption claims allowed or denied accordingly. Unfortunately, lack of legal authority to question religious beliefs in states that don’t permit such an inquiry doesn’t necessarily prevent local officials from making the inquiry anyway. [2] In those instances, rights may ultimately be honored or denied according to people’s knowledge of their rights and their willingness to assert them.
How Does the Law Define Religion?
It is noteworthy for those with unorthodox religious beliefs that the U.S. Supreme Court has defined religion broadly for legal purposes, and federal courts have applied that definition to vaccine religious exemptions. [3]
So, don’t be too quick to assume you don’t qualify for a religious exemption. It just may be that the beliefs you assumed wouldn’t qualify for an exemption do qualify. For example, personal religious beliefs, including one’s personal interpretation of an established religion that does not have tenets opposed to immunization, may qualify for a religious exemption in most states. [4]
Beyond the Law: Practical Considerations
Other exemption concerns involve more practical matters. For example, even if you know your state and federal rights and understand the legal strengths and weaknesses of your particular situation, you may still have to deal with local authorities who may not know your legal rights or who may not cooperate with you even if they do.
Sometimes, local officials resist valid legal exemption claims. Sadly, reports of rude, uncooperative, and even coercive behavior from local officials are not uncommon. Most of the time, local officials are probably acting out of a genuine concern for the health and safety of the community—they do, after all, have a contrary agenda—but sometimes, they overstep professional boundaries in deliberate attempts to discourage people from exercising a valid legal exemption right.
It is most unfortunate that this should ever occur. For one thing, if exercising a vaccine exemption right really posed a significant health risk to anyone, state legislatures and federal agencies would not have enacted exemption laws in the first place, so authorities’ concern for the safety and well-being of the community due to the exercise of legal exemptions is misplaced.
Anyone who disagrees with current laws should seek redress from the appropriate legislature or government agency and not seek to interfere with a citizen’s attempt to exercise a valid legal exemption right.
Finally, even those who successfully exercise a religious exemption may unwittingly leave themselves vulnerable to a future challenge. This occurs when a person’s inadvertent noncompliance with state requirements results in an exemption claim that is initially allowed despite some flaws, but which flaws nevertheless leave it vulnerable to future scrutiny.
Retroactive scrutiny may become increasingly likely as the number of exemption claims continue to rise. So, it is important to comply fully with the law when exercising a vaccine exemption.
Legal Advice
Given the legal complexities of vaccine religious exemptions, many people wisely consult a knowledgeable attorney. Unfortunately, there are few such attorneys in the United States. The National Vaccine Information Center lists three vaccine exemption attorneys. [5] As with any professional service, costs and quality may vary widely, so it may be prudent to shop and compare.
Disclaimer: This document is for educational purposes only and is not intended to constitute legal advice.
References:
1. See Iowa’s Exemption Law at nvic.org/Vaccine-Laws/state-vaccine-requirements/iowa.aspx
2. LePage v. State, 2001 WY 26, 18 P.3d 1177 (2001).
3. Sherr v. Northport-East Northport U. Free, 672 F. Supp. 81, 98 (E.D.N.Y. 1987), (quoting Torcaso v. Watkins, 367 U.S. 488, 81 S.Ct. 1680, 6 L.Ed.2d 982 (1961) and ‘United States v. Seeger,’ 380 U.S. 163, 165-66, 85 S.Ct. 850, 854, 13 L.Ed.2d 733 (1965)).
4. Farina v. The Board of Education, 116 F. Supp.2d 503, 507 (S.D.N.Y. 2000) (citing Sherr, 672 F. Supp. at 91).
5. National Vaccine Information Center (the page for exemption attorneys).
Alan Phillips, J.D., is an attorney with considerable knowledge of vaccine exemptions. His Web site is Vaccinerights.com
