Idaho makes shock move on vaccine mandates in first-of-its-kind bill

Idaho has banned vaccine mandates in schools and businesses in a first-of-its-kind 'medical freedom' bill.

The 'Idaho Medical Freedom Act' bars private businesses, schools and government entities from denying admission or services to a person for not having received a 'medical intervention,' including a vaccine, procedure or medication.

It makes Idaho the first state to in the nation to outlaw vaccine mandates in both public and private sectors.

The legislation was signed into law last week by Idaho Governor Brad Little, a Republican, and is expected to go into effect July 1.

The legislation comes as vaccination rates fall throughout the US and exemptions for medical and religious reasons climb.

These declines have been blamed for the nation's measles outbreak, which has infected more than 500 people in Texas alone.

Idaho is also one of three states that have introduced legislation this year to ban mRNA vaccines like the Covid vaccine due to reports of severe side effects.

If passed, this legislation would ban mRNA Covid vaccines for 10 years.

Critics told DailyMail.com the bill is 'a terrible idea' that could 'lead to the resurgence of vaccine preventable illnesses' other than measles, such as pertussis or 'whooping cough.'

However, other health experts called the legislation 'a brave step in the right direction' to 'protect one’s body and make decisions about one’s health.'

Medical interventions included in the legislation include 'a procedure, treatment, device, drug injection, medication, or action taken to diagnose, prevent, or cure a disease or alter the health or biological function of a person.'

Businesses and government facilities will be banned from requiring these interventions for employment, admission to venues, transportation or providing products or services.

Public and private schools, including universities and trade schools, would also be blocked from requiring vaccines and other interventions for school attendance, employment, or entrance into campus or school buildings.

Little signed the bill last week after vetoing an earlier version of it days before.

The revised bill notes schools can still send home sick children at their discretion.

A spokesperson for Little also told The Idaho Statesman that daycares will still be allowed to require vaccinations under the new law.

Representative Robert Beiswenger, a Republican, told lawmakers the bill 'prevents medical force, medical mandates.

'People can choose them if they want to, but they don’t have to if they don’t want to. You can ask people to leave your place of business.

'But you can’t force them into medical treatments like vaccines or other kinds of treatments.'

Idaho already has the nation's highest rate of kindergarteners with vaccine exemptions, according to the latest CDC data.

During the 2023-2024 school year, 14 percent of kindergarteners had a vaccine exemption, more than three times the national rate.

The next closest state, Alaska, has a 10 percent exemption rate.

And just eight in 10 kindergarteners in Idaho received both doses of the MMR vaccine to prevent measles, which is surging primarily in West Texas. The national average is 93 percent.

Idaho also had the country's lowest rates of polio, DTaP (diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis) and varicella (chickenpox) vaccines in this age group, at 15 percent lower than the national averages.

In 2023, Little signed a law banning Covid vaccine requirements.

While vaccine mandates are commonplace in the US, especially in schools, they are not as prevalent in other countries like the UK.

Vaccinations are highly recommended for school attendance in the UK but are not mandatory for entry. The average childhood vaccination rate in the UK is around 90 percent compared to about 93 percent in the US.

Dr Carole Lieberman, a psychiatrist and public health expert in Beverly Hills, echoed Beiswenger's sentiments and told DailyMail.com the bill will give more control to people in Idaho over their health decisions.

She said: 'Idaho’s new ‘medical freedom’ bill is a brave step in the right direction because no government entity should have the right to control what goes into a person’s body. The freedom to protect one’s body and make decisions about one’s health is a basic human right.

'This bill doesn’t prevent people from taking vaccines, it just leaves the decision up to them, rather than a private business or school.

'It is up to doctors and health departments to create campaigns that explain the benefits of certain drugs and treatments, but then the final decision should be up to the individual or the family.'

However, Dr Dyan Hes, Medical Director of Highline Modern Medicine in New York City told this website the timing of the bill is concerning given the nation's measles outbreak.

He said: 'With the current measles outbreak, a bill that will allow families to opt out of mandated vaccines will increase the spread of measles to all who are not immunized, including babies under age one year and the immunocompromised.

'This bill will also lead to the resurgence of other vaccine preventable illnesses, particularly pertussis (whooping cough), which is already creeping back because of lower vaccine rates and waning immunity.'

According to the latest CDC data, 10 children died from whooping cough last year, the highest number in nearly a decade.

Dr Hes added: 'Vaccines save lives. Period. Sadly, many Americans do not realize what a privilege it is to be vaccinated.'