anti
Activists want anti-vaccine amendment in Ohio Constitution
State politicians advanced an effort Tuesday to place anti-vaccination language onto a general election ballot, which would leave the fate of vaccine mandates in Ohio in voters’ hands. If passed, Ohio would become the only state in the nation with an explicit ban of vaccine mandates in its constitution. It would mark a major step […]
Health care PACs fund campaigns of anti-vaccine legislators
Nearly 3,900 Ohioans are currently hospitalized with COVID-19, the most since mid-January, when vaccines were a scarce commodity allocated only to the neediest recipients. Through the pandemic, meanwhile, the Ohio Hospital Association’s PAC has contributed $13,000 to Republican lawmakers who co-sponsored legislation to ban vaccine mandates from hospitals, colleges, and employers in Ohio. Critics of […]
House GOP passes vaccine mandate ban after months of effort
After nearly six months of sustained efforts from anti-vaccination lawmakers and activists, Ohio House Republicans passed legislation Thursday prohibiting schools, colleges, and employers from requiring vaccination from employees and students. The legislation also extends a broad immunity for people and businesses against lawsuits alleging they negligently spread COVID-19. It passed with a nearly party line, […]
Ohio’s prison workforce is 28% vaccinated, per state data; lowest rate among all state agencies
Ohio’s prison authority, the largest government agency in the state tasked with overseeing the 43,000 inmates in its custody, is the least vaccinated entity in Ohio’s government, according to state data based on employee-submitted records. About 28% of employees within the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction are vaccinated against COVID-19 and have submitted proof […]
Ohio senator joined anti-vaccine panel hyping debunked, ‘alternative’ COVID treatments
An Ohio senator joined a conference of anti-vaccine advocates hyping “alternative” COVID-19 treatments, several of which like ivermectin and hydroxychloroquine are explicitly warned against by regulators, public health officials and medical associations. State Sen. Andrew Brenner, R-Delaware, was introduced as a “surprise special guest” amid a panel that included an anti-vaccination advocate who was indicted […]
Once again, Ohio House ices vaccine mandate bill: ‘We don’t have the votes’
For the second time in three months, House Speaker Bob Cupp halted legislation Wednesday aimed to limit the ability of employers, colleges, hospitals and others to impose vaccine mandates. Cupp’s announcement came amid a flurry of private caucus meetings, unseen proposed amendments, aggressive lobbying tactics and tense rhetoric from members on a heated issue focused […]
Anti-vaxxers rally outside residence of House Health Chairman
A cohort of roughly 15 anti-vaccine activists gathered around an apartment in Gahanna where they believed Ohio House Health Chairman Scott Lipps, R-Franklin, resides — one of three similarly sized protests at residences Friday where they figured he might be. They gathered to protest the Health Committee’s failure to pass sweeping legislation to ban vaccine […]
Taking heat from all sides, House GOP shelves anti-vaccination bill
Ohio House Republicans have pumped the brakes on what was once turbo-charged legislation aimed to restrict abilities of employers and colleges to require vaccination against COVID-19. The House Speaker and top lawmakers introduced the legislation Tuesday afternoon with the intent of the whole House passing it Wednesday. The House Health Committee passed it 11-3 on […]
Ohio Medical Board renews license of doc who claims vaccines make you magnetic
They’re forcing freedom loving Americans to choose between injection of a “deadly” vaccine or testing those who will not comply via torturing them with nasal swabs looking for a “virus that, by some claims, doesn’t even exist.” This claim, equal parts baseless and conspiratorial, appears on a website that solicited funds to the address of […]
History Thursday: When the Supreme Court said yes to vaccine mandates
The vaccine mandate debate may be rejuvenated, but it’s hardly new. The U.S. Supreme Court answered the can-they-do-that question more than 115 years ago. In an era when infectious diseases killed more Americans than any other cause of death, smallpox was ripping through Cambridge, Massachusetts. State lawmakers passed a statute allowing local boards of health, […]
Fewer than 1 in 2 vaccinated against COVID-19 in most Ohio counties
In 66 of Ohio’s 88 counties, fewer than 1 in 2 residents have received at least one dose of vaccination against COVID-19, which has killed more than 661,000 Americans since the pandemic began. The low vaccination coverage, found via an analysis of state data from Sunday, indicates vast swaths of the state remain vulnerable to […]
Analysis: Collision looms in Ohio’s vaccination debate as more mandates stack up
In a sudden and unmistakable shift, Ohio’s vaccine debate transcended from the abstract to concrete. An inevitable collision looms. Even before the pandemic, some Ohio Republican lawmakers have sought to limit the ability of businesses — especially hospitals — to require vaccination from employees. This year, lawmakers have held repeated hearings on legislation to ban […]