It's That time of Year: Don't be Fooled by Schools
Exemption information is being withheld from parents and students
This may make heads explode but it’s true: Students DO NOT have to be vaccinated to attend ANY Louisiana school, either public or nonpublic (private/catholic, etc), or any licensed daycare. Unfortunately, some school nurses and school administrators refuse to accept this fact, as evidenced by the misleading communications sent from the department of health and schools across the state. With the new school year around the corner, parents have already sent us many direct communications from schools stating that students will be barred from school attendance without proof of vaccination. This is blatant and egregious coercion by putting parents under duress.
Coercion “may be either actual . . . where physical force is put upon a man to compel him to do an act against his will, or implied . . . where the relation of the parties is such that one is under subjection to the other, and is thereby constrained to do what his free will would refuse.” Duress is “unlawfully threatening another person with the intention of getting them to do something they normally wouldn’t have done.” - Black's Law Dictionary
As we thoroughly explain on our website, RS 17:170(E), the law governing vaccine requirements for school, clearly states that students may submit either a medical exemption with a note from a doctor OR a simple statement of “written dissent” for any and all vaccine requirements. RS 17:170(A)(1) also states that satisfactory evidence of prior immunity may also be submitted in lieu of proof of vaccination.
It is arrogant to assume that all parents have the ability or capacity to research vaccine requirements, and if parents don’t even know about the existence of exemptions, how will they know to ask about them? Therefore, informing parents of the full extent of the law is absolutely essential. Not only are the schools not informing parents of their options, but they are scaring them by threatening to remove their child from school if they do not comply.
We at Health Freedom Louisiana have made SEVERAL attempts over the years to put into the statute that schools MUST inform parents of their options under the law, but EVERY SINGLE time it was either voted down in committee by both Democrat and Republican legislators, or blocked from a floor vote by Republican leadership.
Most recently, House Bill 47, sponsored by Representative Kathy Edmonston, died on the Senate floor when Senate President Page Cortez refused to call it to the floor for a vote, despite considerable public interest.
Much has been made of Louisiana’s “liberal vaccine exemptions” especially when Governor John Bel Edwards, through the Louisiana Department of Health, instated an extremely unpopular policy of requiring the covid vaccine for school, which we fought hard to rescind, and it was. But, as we and other parents have testified countless times in front of legislative committees, most parents are not aware of the law and it is almost always omitted from any communication to students or parents and instead include threats of missing school. We have given copies of our file with more than thirty pages of examples of misleading and erroneous communications from LDH and schools to members of both Education Committees as well as emailing it to every single legislator. They know this is a huge problem yet they refuse to do anything about it.
For example, this email was sent to Lincoln Parish parents on Friday, August 5th, 2022:
This communication is especially egregious because there IS a state law that requires ANY communication from schools to parents/students regarding the meningococcal vaccine must also include information about the exemption options.
RS 17:170.4(E) states:
E. Any written communication issued to students pursuant to this Section shall include notice that the student's parent, tutor, or legal guardian may be exempt from compliance with this Section under the conditions set forth in Subsection B of this Section.
So not only is this communication an excellent example of coercion and duress, it violates the state law that specifically addresses the meningococcal vaccine.
What can you do?
Know the law, your rights, and share that knowledge with your family and friends. The law is on your side, but you must know it in order to use it to your advantage. We go into detail on our Exemptions for School page on our site, as well as have an exemption form you can print and use.
Inform your school administrators that misleading communications like the above is in violation of Louisiana law and therefore, unacceptable. Until we can pass a law requiring schools to inform parents of exemptions, it will be up to YOU to influence positive change regarding the school’s communications.
Send us copies of any communications like the one above that mislead parents. We have already sent an email to the Lincoln Parish School Superintendent, Ricky Durrett (and if your child goes to school there, we suggest you email him too).
Stay in contact with your legislators. Make sure they know informed consent and health freedom are your priority and will influence your vote.
Vote wisely.
Having just heard of an exemption being denied by a private Catholic school, it is also very important to note the law on exemptions, RS 17:170(E), applies to “any school within the state,” which includes nonpublic schools too. We break down the law in detail on our site. Additionally, nonpublic schools must abide by the Louisiana Handbook for Nonpublic School Administrators. As stated in Chapter 1 of Bulletin 741 for nonpublic schools:
Each accredited, approved school shall annually demonstrate to the LDE that the school meets the health, safety, and welfare requirements as established in this bulletin.
Chapter 11 of Bulletin 741 for nonpublic schools states:
E. No student seeking to enter any school shall be required to comply with the provisions of this Section if the student or the student’s parent or guardian submits either a written statement from a physician stating that the procedure is contraindicated for medical reasons, or a written dissent from the student or the student’s parent or guardian is presented.
Schools who refuse to abide by regulations set forth in Bulletin 741 risk losing their accreditation and any funding, specifically Emergency Assistance for Non-Public Schools (EANS) Program funding, determined by accreditation.
Private schools should heed this warning: legally, you are not allowed to discriminate against unvaccinated individuals.
Many thanks to Carol Friedland for her research into Bulletin 741 for nonpublic schools!
Updated to add:
RS 17:170(A)(3) reads:
(3) The schedule may provide specific requirements based on age, grade in school, or type of school. At its own discretion and with the approval of the office of public health, an educational institution or licensed day care center may require immunizations or proof of immunity more extensive than required by the schedule approved by the office of public health.
Schools must have approval from the office of public health to require any immunizations or proof of immunity that the state does not. If your school is requiring anything the state does not — the flu shot for example — ask for the letter from LDH granting the approval of that requirement. Section A(3) does not give LDH authority to grant requests for a school to exclude students who submit exemptions.
We hope this information is helpful. And if you find value in our work, we would greatly appreciate any donation, since we are 100% volunteer, giving our time to research, inform, and empower others.
We do it because it is so very important that parents know their rights and protect their freedom.
