House approves foster care vaccination bill

April 24, 2013

A requirement that foster parents immunize their own children before being granted licenses would go away under a bill approved Tuesday in the Arizona House. 

Chandler Republican Bob Robson says the state is already taking care of the health of foster children.

"We are giving a path for some kid to have a normal life by allowing this bill to pass through and generally I weigh things on basically who does it help, who does it hurt, and do we really need to do it. In this case it really helps," Robson said.

But Paradise Valley Democrat and medical doctor Eric Meyer says the bill would expose children to dangerous diseases,

"States that make it easy to exempt children from vaccinations had a 90 percent higher rate of whooping cough in 2011," Meyer said.

The bill now returns to the Senate for agreement on House changes.