| 1 | A bill to be entitled |
| 2 | An act relating to immunizations; prohibiting vaccinating |
| 3 | a woman who is knowingly pregnant or a child who is |
| 4 | younger than a specified age with a vaccine that contains |
| 5 | any mercury or injecting such a woman or child with a |
| 6 | product that contains more than a specified amount of |
| 7 | mercury; prohibiting vaccinating a woman who is knowingly |
| 8 | pregnant or a child under a specified age with an |
| 9 | influenza vaccine that contains more than a specified |
| 10 | amount of mercury; providing the effective date of such |
| 11 | prohibitions; providing for the State Health Officer to |
| 12 | authorize the use of vaccines that contain a greater |
| 13 | amount of mercury than is otherwise allowed if the |
| 14 | Secretary of Health declares a public health emergency and |
| 15 | makes certain findings; providing exceptions to the |
| 16 | prohibition following disclosure regarding certain risks |
| 17 | and benefits; providing an effective date. |
| 18 |
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| 19 | Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: |
| 20 |
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| 21 | Section 1. Vaccinations and injections containing mercury |
| 22 | prohibited for pregnant women and young children.-- |
| 23 | (1) Except for an influenza vaccine described in |
| 24 | subsection (2), on and after July 1, 2007, a woman who is |
| 25 | knowingly pregnant or a child who is younger than 3 years of age |
| 26 | may not be vaccinated with a vaccine that contains any mercury |
| 27 | or injected with a product that contains more than 0.5 |
| 28 | micrograms of mercury per 0.5-milliliter dose. |
| 29 | (2) On and after July 1, 2007, a woman who is knowingly |
| 30 | pregnant or a child who is younger than 3 years of age may not |
| 31 | be vaccinated with an influenza vaccine that contains more than |
| 32 | 1 microgram of mercury per 0.5-milliliter dose. |
| 33 | (3) If the Secretary of Health declares a public health |
| 34 | emergency under s. 381.00315, Florida Statutes, and finds that |
| 35 | an epidemic or shortage of supply of a vaccine will prevent |
| 36 | knowingly pregnant women and children younger than 3 years of |
| 37 | age from receiving the needed vaccine, the State Health Officer |
| 38 | may authorize the administration of a vaccine containing more |
| 39 | mercury than the maximum level established in subsection (1), or |
| 40 | subsection (2) in the case of influenza vaccine, to knowingly |
| 41 | pregnant women or children younger than 3 years of age. |
| 42 | (4) A licensed health care practitioner may only |
| 43 | administer a vaccine containing more mercury than the maximum |
| 44 | level established in subsection (1), or subsection (2) in the |
| 45 | case of influenza vaccine, to a knowingly pregnant woman or a |
| 46 | child younger than 3 years of age if, according to the |
| 47 | practitioner's medical judgment under accepted medical |
| 48 | standards, the benefits of the patient receiving the vaccine to |
| 49 | prevent a vaccine-preventable disease outweigh the risks of |
| 50 | mercury exposure. Before administering the vaccine, the |
| 51 | practitioner must provide to the patient or the patient's legal |
| 52 | guardian information concerning the risks and benefits of the |
| 53 | vaccination. |
| 54 | Section 2. This act shall take effect upon becoming a law. |