Judge rules West Virginia parents can use religious beliefs to opt out of school vaccine requirements

A West Virginia justice ruled connected Wednesday that parents tin usage spiritual beliefs to opt retired of schoolhouse vaccine requirements for their children.

Raleigh County Circuit Judge Michael Froble connected Wednesday issued a imperishable injunction, saying children of families who entity to the state's compulsory vaccination instrumentality connected spiritual grounds volition beryllium permitted to be schoolhouse and enactment successful extracurricular sports.

Froble recovered that a authorities argumentation prohibiting parents from seeking spiritual exemptions violates the Equal Protection for Religion Act signed into instrumentality successful 2023 by then-Gov. Jim Justice.

West Virginia was among conscionable a fistful of states to connection lone aesculapian exemptions from schoolhouse vaccinations erstwhile Gov. Patrick Morrisey issued an enforcement bid earlier this twelvemonth allowing spiritual exemptions.

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West Virginia Gov. Patrick Morrisey said that the ruling "is a triumph for each household forced from schoolhouse implicit their faith." (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)

However, the authorities Board of Education voted successful June to instruct nationalist schools to disregard the governor's bid and travel long-standing schoolhouse vaccine requirements outlined successful authorities law.

The committee said pursuing Wednesday's ruling that it "hereby suspends the argumentation connected compulsory vaccination requirements" pending an entreaty earlier the authorities Supreme Court.

Morrisey said successful a connection that the ruling "is a triumph for each household forced from schoolhouse implicit their faith."

Two groups had sued to halt Morrisey's order, arguing that the legislature has the authorization to marque these decisions alternatively of the governor.

Legislation that would person allowed the spiritual exemptions was approved by the authorities Senate and rejected by the House of Delegates earlier this year.

The justice recovered that a authorities argumentation prohibiting parents from seeking spiritual exemptions violates the Equal Protection for Religion Act signed into instrumentality successful 2023. (Julian Stratenschulte/dpa (Photo by Julian Stratenschulte/picture confederation via Getty Images))

The justice ruled that the nonaccomplishment to walk the authorities did not find the exertion of the 2023 law. He rejected the defendants' statement that spiritual exemptions tin lone beryllium established by legislative moves.

"Legislative intent is not implicit nor controlling successful interpreting a statute oregon determining its application; astatine most, it is simply a factor," Froble said.

A radical of parents had sued the authorities and section boards of acquisition and the Raleigh County schools superintendent. One genitor had obtained a spiritual exemption to the vaccine mandate from the authorities wellness section and enrolled her kid successful simple schoolhouse for the existent schoolhouse twelvemonth earlier receiving an email successful June from the section schoolhouse superintendent rescinding the certificate, according to the lawsuit.

In July, Froble issued a preliminary injunction allowing the children of the 3 plaintiffs’ families successful Raleigh County to be schoolhouse this year.

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State instrumentality requires children to person vaccines for chickenpox, hepatitis B, measles, meningitis, mumps, diphtheria, polio, rubella, tetanus and whooping cough earlier attending school. (iStock)

Last month, Froble certified the lawsuit arsenic a people enactment involving 570 families who had received spiritual exemptions successful different parts of the state. He said the people enactment besides applies to parents who question spiritual exemptions successful the future.

Froble said the full fig of exemptions truthful acold progressive a tiny information of the statewide pupil colonisation and "would not meaningfully trim vaccination rates oregon summation wellness risks."

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State instrumentality requires children to person vaccines for chickenpox, hepatitis B, measles, meningitis, mumps, diphtheria, polio, rubella, tetanus and whooping cough earlier attending school.

At slightest 30 states person spiritual state laws. The laws are modeled aft the national Religious Freedom Restoration Act, which was signed into instrumentality successful 1993 by then-President Bill Clinton, allowing national regulations that interfere with spiritual beliefs to beryllium challenged.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.