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Court reopens debate on vaccine exemptions

A court order has revived questions over whether New York might again allow religious exemptions for school vaccinations, according to the Ithaca Journal.


The U.S. Supreme Court recently told a lower court to reconsider a challenge brought by Amish parents after New York eliminated religious exemptions in 2019 following a major measles outbreak. State and local health officials say they strongly oppose rolling back the rules, citing past outbreaks of measles, mumps, and polio linked to low vaccination rates.

Advocates and lawmakers remain divided as federal attitudes toward vaccines shift, but New York officials stressed current law still requires schoolchildren to be vaccinated unless they qualify for a medical exemption.