Balancing Public Health and Individual Choice: A Proposal for a Federal Emergency Vaccination Law
Sara Mahmoud-Davis, 20 Health Matrix 219 (2010)
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Part I discusses the relationship between vaccinations and informed consent, including exemptions. Part II examines the scientific foundation for compulsory vaccination law and looks at the inherent tension between immunization exemptions and the public health. Part III establishes the constitutional basis for permitting religious exemptions and conditional rights of refusal, while excluding philosophical opt-outs. Part IV presents arguments in favor of a federal emergency vaccination law and proposes amending the Federal Public Health Service Act. Finally, Part V explains how the mass vaccination clinics would operate and describes the informed consent and opt-out process.
