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Vaccines Mandates and Religion: Where are We Headed with the Current Supreme Court?

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  10 January 2022

Dorit R. Reiss
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Abstract

This article argues that the Supreme Court should not require a religious exemption from vaccine mandates. For children, who cannot yet make autonomous religious decision, religious exemptions would allow parents to make a choice that puts the child at risk and makes the shared environment of the school unsafe — risking other people’s children. For adults, there are still good reasons not to require a religious exemption, since vaccines mandates are adopted for public health reasons, not to target religion, are an area where free riding is a real risk, no religion actually prohibits vaccinating under a mandate, and policing religious exemptions is very difficult.

Keywords

VaccinesPublic HealthFreedom of ReligionSupreme CourtChildren’s Rights
Type
Symposium Articles
Information
Journal of Law, Medicine & Ethics , Volume 49 , Issue 4: First Amendment Values in Health Care , Winter 2021 , pp. 552 - 563
Copyright
© 2021 The Author(s)

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