Court upholds law abolishing religious exemption from vaccinations

ALBANY — A mid-level state court Thursday upheld a new law that abolished a religious exemption from mandatory vaccines for children in schools.

The Appellate Division, New York’s second-highest court venue, said the new law didn’t violate freedom of speech or religion guarantees. The law was approved in 2019 amid a measles outbreak in New York.

"Under the well-settled case law and the facts presented here, the (law) easily survives rational basis review," Justice Stanley Pritzker wrote for the court in a 5-0 decision. "Most parents, no doubt, are well aware of the speed with which a virus can sweep through a classroom. Targeting school children, as such, is a rational approach to stemming the spread of communicable diseases."

He said the court rejected claims that lawmakers were "motivated by religious animus."

Pritzker added: "Finally, contrary to their contention, plaintiffs' freedom of speech claim fails as a matter of law. … Although the repeal may force parents to make difficult decisions for their families, it ‘does not interfere with plaintiffs' right to communicate, or to refrain from communicating, any message they like."

The Appellate Division ruling not only upheld the 2019 law but also a lower court ruling in 2019.

Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo and the State Legislature abolished the religious exemption that had applied to New York’s vaccine requirement for school-age children.

They acted following the biggest measles outbreak in 25 years, with about 1,000 cases reported in the state, mostly in New York City and Rockland County.

The new law doesn’t order children to be vaccinated. But it prohibits unvaccinated children from public schools and day care programs.