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A3 THE ASTORIAN • TUESDAY, MAY 14, 2019 New Washington state law limits exemptions for measles vaccine Similar bill pending in Oregon By MOLLY SOLOMON Oregon Public Broadcasting VANCOUVER, Wash. — Washington state par- ents will no longer be able to claim a personal or philosoph- ical exemption to avoid giv- ing their children the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine. Gov. Jay Inslee signed the bill to limit such exemptions Friday morning during a visit to Vancouver, the epicenter of a measles outbreak that sickened 71 people earlier this year. “In Washington state we believe in our doctors. We believe in our nurses. We believe in our educators. We believe in science and we love our children,” Inslee said alongside Clark County law- makers and public offi cials before signing the bill into law. “And that is why in Wash- ington state, we are against measles.” The outbreak in southwest Washington forced schools to exclude hundreds of unvac- cinated students, cost pub- lic health authorities nearly $1 million and prompted Ins- lee to declare a public health emergency. The health scare also pushed state legislators to tighten vaccine laws this ses- sion. More than 90% of the 71 cases in Washington were peo- ple who had not been vacci- nated. The local outbreak was offi cially declared over on April 29, after no new cases were seen after a six-week period. Inslee said removing the personal, philosophical exemption is an important fi rst step toward public health to protect the state’s “most vul- nerable citizens.” But he urged continued work at local and national levels to dispel fears of vaccines that have circu- lated on the internet. “We should be listening to science and medicine, not social media,” Inslee said. State Rep. Paul Harris, R-Vancouver, sponsored the bill as a simple message to parents: If you want your kids to go to a public school, they must be vaccinated. “I just think it’s the right thing to do,” Harris said. “Hopefully this will get our rates up so we have commu- nity immunity.” At the time of the recent measles outbreak, Clark County had a vaccination rate of 78%, with some schools in the area reporting rates under 40%. Health offi cials say com- munities need to have vacci- nation rates between 90% and 95% to prevent an outbreak. “I hope this new law will bring to the forefront again the importance of being vacci- nated,” Harris said. As the bill made its way through the Legislature, it drew the attention of anti-vac- cine opponents, who fl ooded public hearings with concerns that vaccines would harm their children. A couple of dozen people stood outside Vancou- ver City Hall on Friday, hold- ing signs to protest the bill signing. The new law only applies to the MMR vaccine for measles, mumps and rubella. Parents can continue to opt their kids out of other required school vaccinations with a personal or philosophical exemption. Religious and medical exemp- tions are also still allowed for all vaccinations. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Pre- vention, measles have sick- ened at least 764 people in the U.S. this year — an all-time high in cases reported since measles was declared elimi- nated in 2000. More than 10 other states are considering tightening their vaccination laws this year, including Oregon, which is debating a bill to do away with non medical exemptions entirely. Clark County public health director Alan Melnick is hope- ful Washington can continue to move forward on enforc- ing stricter laws for child school-required vaccinations and improving public aware- ness of the issue. Freak show comes to town Photos by Colin Murphey/The Astorian ABOVE: A performer known as Johnny Mayhem carves an apple with a chainsaw during the Astoria Freak Show. BELOW: An entertainer on stilts towers over people as they prepare to enter the Astoria Freak Show. See more photos and a video online at DailyAstorian.com Undocumented immigrants could get driver’s licenses under bill Hope is to make roads safer By CLAIRE WITHYCOMBE Oregon Capital Bureau SALEM — Undocu- mented immigrants and oth- ers who can’t prove they are in the country legally could get a driver’s license under a proposal in the state House. With less than two months before the Legisla- ture adjourns, though, there has been no action since law- makers on the Joint Com- mittee on Transportation took testimony on the bill in mid-April. The committee is scheduled to work on the bill in about two weeks. Supporters say the bill, by allowing drivers who are undocumented to get licensed and to get car insur- ance, could make roads safer, potentially reducing the number of hit-and-runs by uninsured drivers. They say that if the bill is passed, undocumented immigrants would no longer need to rely on their teen- age children or other peo- ple with legal status to get to work or other obligations — especially in the state’s rural areas, where driving long distances is par for the course. The bill would direct the state Department of T rans- portation to start offering licenses to people without proof of legal status starting in 2021. Thirty-six sponsors The bill has 36 sponsors in the House — more than half of all its members. One of the bill’s chief sponsors, state Rep. Diego Hernandez, D-Portland, said that’s far from a guarantee that House Bill 2015 will pass. Hernandez hopes the bill will wind its way from com- mittee, to the budget com- mittees, and to each chamber. “But we’re running out of time,” Hernandez said. “So anything can happen.” Sen. James Manning, D-Eugene, another chief sponsor of the measure, said he believes a majority of his Senate colleagues support clearing a path to driver’s licenses. “I think that the major- ity of my colleagues would support a safety bill like this,” Manning said. “Every- one has their own bills that they’re trying to move for- ward, so it’s a bit of a lit- tle shuffl e ... But I intend to carry this message through and have one-on-ones with people that have any ques- tions about the bill.” Manning served in the Army for 24 years, a tenure that included stints abroad. During an interview, he held up the driver’s license he obtained while serving in Panama. “The only thing that this entitled me to or provided for me, was that I understood the rules of the road and I was able to get insurance,” Man- ning said. “Nothing more, nothing less.” Manning stresses that the bill is “about safety.” All people living in the U.S. have to pass tests and get cleared to drive, he said. “We want to make sure that if you’re here temporar- ily or long term and you’re going to navigate our roads, we want to make sure that you’re properly licensed,” Manning said. “And again, getting a driver’s license is a privilege, it’s not a right. Because you’re an American citizen, that doesn’t mean you have the right to drive. You have to prove that you qualify to drive.” Causa, an immigrants’ rights organization, esti- mates that up to 100,000 peo- ple living in Oregon could be eligible. The measure wouldn’t impact only undocumented immigrants. Even U.S. citizens who, for whatever reason, may not have access to documents proving their legal presence would be able to get driv- ing privileges by passing the required tests. That includes people who are homeless and survivors of domestic violence. Abusive partners can hold vital records hostage or destroy them, according to Jessica Mathis, a hous- ing coordinator for Bradley Angle, a Portland shelter. “When survivors are unable to drive, they can’t maintain the jobs they need in order to support their families and leave abuse,” Mathis said in written testi- mony. “Without the ability to go to work, access social ser- vices, or take their children to school they often have to return to their abuser. Hav- ing to choose between safety and driving illegally is not only bad for these families, but the community. We are all impacted by the increased safety and fi nancial risk of unlicensed and uninsured drivers.” Political climate In late 2007, then-Gov. Ted Kulongoski, a Democrat, issued an executive order saying that people applying for driver’s licenses, driving permits and ID cards in Ore- gon had to document their citizenship or that they were in the U.S. legally. Six years later, lawmak- Cheers to 80 years Please join us for Conley Vaughn’s Birthday! May 18th•1-3 pm Seaside American Legion •1315 Broadway. No gifts, please ers moved to create a special driver’s card program for undocumented immigrants, but opponents sent the mea- sure to the ballot, where vot- ers rejected it. Supporters of the new bill believe the political envi- ronment around immigra- tion has changed in the wake of the 2016 presidential election. They point to the fail- ure of Measure 105, a bal- lot measure last November that would have repealed Oregon’s decades-old law that prevents state and local law enforcement for expend- ing resources to arrest peo- ple whose only violation of the law is being here without legal permission. “In the past several years, the context around immi- gration has changed com- pletely around the country and around our state,” said Iván Hernández, communi- cations manager for Causa. “We saw that with Mea- sure 105 …when Orego- nians voted overwhelmingly to protect our immigrant neighbors by protecting the state’s anti-discrimination and anti-racial profi ling laws and the state sanctuary law.” Others, however, have objected to the idea . Keith Rosenstrater, of Salem, urged lawmakers to reject the measure because it “legitimizes illegal immi- gration, devalues citizenship and threatens the sovereignty of our state and nation.” The Oregon Capital Bureau is a collaboration between EO Media Group, Pamplin Media Group and Salem Reporter. WANTED Alder and Maple Saw Logs & Standing Timber Northwest Hardwoods • Longview, WA Contact: John Anderson • 360-269-2500
