Attorney General Tong Statement on U.S. Supreme Court Denial of Cert in Case Challenging Connecticut School Vaccine Requirements

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06/24/2024

Attorney General Tong Statement on U.S. Supreme Court Denial of Cert in Case Challenging Connecticut School Vaccine Requirements

(Hartford, CT) – Attorney General William Tong released the following statement after the U.S. Supreme Court today declined to hear a case challenging Connecticut Public Act No. 21-6, which eliminated the religious exemption to school vaccine requirements.

“This is the end of the road to a challenge to Connecticut’s lifesaving and fully lawful vaccine requirements. We have said all along, and the courts have affirmed-- the legislature acted responsibly and well within its authority to protect the health of Connecticut families and to stop the spread of preventable disease,” said Attorney General Tong.

Plaintiffs -- We the Patriots USA, Inc -- argued that Connecticut violated their First Amendment rights by removing the religious exemption from school vaccination requirements. Both the District Court and the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit entirely rejected that argument. Plaintiffs then asked the U.S. Supreme Court to hear the case. Today, the Supreme Court declined.

See here for the brief filed by Attorney General Tong in opposition to the petition for writ of certiorari (the request for the Supreme Court to consider the case).

Only one part of the case now remains active, involving a single plaintiff’s claim based on the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). The Office of the Attorney General is confident that the IDEA claim will be dismissed by the District Court on remand.

Connecticut law requires students receive certain immunizations before enrolling in school. Prior to 2021, students could apply for medical or religious exemptions to that requirement. P.A. 21-6 eliminated the religious exemption, while grandfathering students in kindergarten through grade twelve who had already received such exemptions.

Twitter: @AGWilliamTong

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Media Contact:

Elizabeth Benton
elizabeth.benton@ct.gov

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