Dear California NVIC Advocacy Team Members,

A hearing on AB2109 is scheduled in the Senate Health Committee for June 27^th at 1:30 P.M. in the John L. Burton Hearing Room (4203) at the California State Capitol, 1301 10^th Street, Sacramento, CA  95814.  Please be there if you can. 

The committee hearing agenda is posted here:  http://shea.senate.ca.gov/agenda.

The text of most current version of AB2109 is posted here: http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/pub/11-12/bill/asm/ab_2101-2150/ab_2109_bill_20120620_amended_sen_v97.html.

ACTION NEEDED:

1)    Call and write members of the Senate Health Committee and tell them to VOTE NO on AB2109. Please see the contact information in the table below.

2)    Plan on attending the hearing on June 27^th. Please contact your California NVIC State Directors Dawn Winkler and Michelle Gutierrez at  CADirector@NVICAdvocacy.org if you are able to attend the hearing.  You can also call Dawn Winkler at 530-283-1018. You can either give oral testimony, submit written testimony, and/or just register in opposition to the bill.  We need a strong constituency of Californians opposing this bill to be in attendance!  If you would like to provide written information to the committee, have 12 copies available for members and staff.  Please see more information below from Dawn Winkler if you are attending.

3)    BRING your video and still cameras to the capitol and film and take pictures! Great advice from Vermont’s NVIC State Director Jennifer Stella, who recently helped lead the fight against an attack on the philosophical exemption in Vermont, is to record everything in the legislative process.  Legislators need to know the families in California are watching and keeping track of what they say and do to affect their rights!  If you are able to video record the hearing or take pictures of the hearing room and people inside testifying, please email our research assistant and Colorado State Director, Cindy Loveland atCODirector@NVICAdvocacy.org and she will share with you instructions after the hearing for helping us archive and save the video and pictures.  

4)    Send this to as many friends and family in California that you can and ask them to please register for the NVIC Advocacy Portal at http://NVICAdvocacy.org so they can get added to this state email list and receive updates on how they can continue to help fight this bill.

POINTS TO BE MADE TO THE SENATORS:

The most important point to make with Senators is to let them know that if parents are unable to comply with the requirement in AB2109 to have a health care practitioner meet with them and sign their exemption form, their child cannot go to school!!!   This can lead to truancy charges and a lapse in the child’s education.

Listed below are some of the many valid reasons why families who use the personal belief exemption may not be able to comply with this burdensome and expensive proposed mandate.

·         The parent cannot find a physician who will accept appointments with unvaccinated or partially vaccinated children in their practice. Parents are being kicked out of medical practices all over California for not fully vaccinating.

·         The healthcare practitioner refuses to sign the form because nothing in the bill requires them to.   

·         It is against the parent’s religion to go to the type of healthcare practitioner required to sign the form.

·         The parent cannot afford the work time off or money for a visit to the healthcare practitioner to get the form signed, especially if they have multiple children.

·         The parent selectively vaccinates and utilizes an RN, a school nurse or a pharmacist who can all administer vaccines in CA, but cannot sign the form.

·         The parent only utilizes alternative medicine.

·         The parent only has access to a health department or school clinic that only has an RN or School Nurse on staff, who is not allowed to sign.

·         The parent currently is in the Healthy Families program and may have difficulty finding a medical provider after the Healthy Families Program is rolled over to Medi-Cal.

·         The parent knows a child (their own child, a relative, a neighbor, a friend's child, a child in their community) who has been harmed, disabled, made chronically ill, or killed by their state mandated vaccines, and as a result, the parent does not to have their child fully vaccinated.

SENATE HEALTH COMMITTEE CONTACT INFORMATION:

SenatorCapitol Phone and Fax NumberDistrict Phone and Fax NumberContact Form or EmailEd Hernandez (D) – ChairPhone: (916) 651-4024

Fax: (916) 445-0485West Covina

Phone: (626) 430-2499

Fax: (626) 430-2494http://sd24.senate.ca.gov/contactTom Harman (R) – Vice ChairPhone: (916) 651-4035

Fax: (916) 445-9263Costa Mesa

Phone: (714) 957-4555

Fax: (714) 957-4560http://cssrc.us/web/35/contact_us.aspxElaine Alquist (D)Phone: (916)651-4013

Fax: (916)324-0283Gilroy

Phone: (408)847-6101

Fax: (408)847-6096senator.alquist@sen.ca.gov

http://dist13.casen.govoffice.com/Joel Anderson (R)Phone: (916) 651-4036 Fax: (916) 447-9008TemeculaPhone: 951-676-1020 Fax: (951) 676-1030

El CajonPhone: (619) 596-3136 Fax: (619) 596-3140http://cssrc.us/web/36/contact_me.aspxSam Blakeslee (R)Phone: (916) 651-4015 Fax: (916) 445-8081San Luis ObispoPhone: (916) 651-4015 Fax: (916) 445-8081http://cssrc.us/web/15/contact_me.aspxKevin de Leon (D)Phone: (916) 651-4022

Fax: (916) 327-8817Los Angeles

Phone: (213) 612-9566

Fax: (213) 612-9591http://sd22.senate.ca.gov/Mark DeSaulnier (D)Phone: (916) 651-4007 Fax: (916) 445-2527Walnut Creek Phone:(925) 942-6082 Fax: (925) 942-6087http://sd07.senate.ca.gov/contactMichael Rubio (D)Phone: (916) 651-4016 Fax: (916) 327-5989Fresno Phone: (559) 264-3070 Fax: (559) 445-6506

Bakersfield

Phone: (661) 395-2620 Fax: (661) 395-2622http://sd16.senate.ca.gov/contact/email-meLois Wolk (D) Senate Sponsor for AB2109Phone: (916) 651-4005

Fax: (916)323-2304Vacaville

Phone: (707)454-3808

Fax: (707) 454-3811

Stockton

Phone:

(209)948-7930

Fax: (209) 948-7993senator.wolk@senate.ca.gov

http://sd05.senate.ca.gov/ 

HEARING NOTES FROM CALIFORNIA NVIC STATE DIRECTOR DAWN WINKLER:

Please, if at all possible, plan to attend the hearing in the Senate Health committee on this Wednesday, June 27^th at 1:30 at the State Capitol in room 4203. It is best to arrive around noon to find parking and get to the hearing room.Please let me know if you are coming at CADirector@NVICAdvocacy.org. There is still much to be figured out with respect to people testifying. Everyone should get a couple of minutes, but there will be a few who get more and we need to determine who those will be. We'll have stickers and wearing black seemed to look nice and work well last time. Make a sign if you like, but it will have to go in the trash before you go into the building. We'll meet outside at the main steps again at noon. By all means, bring your children if you can.  

Above is the contact list again for the committee. More faxes and phone calls certainly would not hurt.

I am told by the chair, Hernandez, that more testimony will be allowed and that people won't be cut off if they stay within reason. I can't guarantee anything, but in my experience, the Senate side seems to accomodate more testimony from more people. So prepare about 2 minutes. I do not know how long this hearing will go on or when our bill will be up so you need to be prepared to go with the flow and be ready for the long haul. Bring snacks and drinks.

I look forward to seeing as many of you as possible and if you can't be there, please keep the faxes and calls rolling in to the committe up until 1:30 on Wednesday. 

Thank you so much to everyone for your help and support through these last 4 months! I have no idea what Wednesday's outcome will be, but we MUST try our best to save parental rights and medical freedom in California. We do have some hope as there have been some recent developments which may or may not go anywhere, but it is hope nonetheless. 

Hope to see many of you there!!!

In Health and Liberty,
Dawn Winkler
CA State Co-Director
National Vaccine Information Center (NVIC) www.nvicadvocacy.org 
Executive Director
Health Advocacy in the Public Interest (HAPI) hapi.vaxinfo@gmail.com 530-283-1018 970-209-3919 Sincerely,

Dawn Richardson, Director of Advocacy
National Vaccine Information Center http://NVIC.org and http://NVICAdvocacy.org Dawn@NVICAdvocacy.org

The National Vaccine Information Center (NVIC) works diligently to prepare and disseminate our legislative advocacy action alerts and supporting materials.  We request that organizations and members of the public forward our alerts in their original form to assure consistent and accurate messaging and effective action. Please acknowledge NVIC as originators of this work when forwarding to members of the public and like-minded organizations. To receive alerts immediately, register  at http://NVICAdvocacy.org, a website dedicated to this sole purpose and provided as a free public service by NVIC. 

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Senator

Capitol Phone and Fax Number

District Phone and Fax Number

Contact Form or Email

Ed Hernandez (D) – Chair

Phone: (916) 651-4024

Fax: (916) 445-0485

West Covina

Phone: (626) 430-2499

Fax: (626) 430-2494

http://sd24.senate.ca.gov/contact

Tom Harman (R) – Vice Chair

Phone: (916) 651-4035

Fax: (916) 445-9263

Costa Mesa

Phone: (714) 957-4555

Fax: (714) 957-4560

http://cssrc.us/web/35/contact_us.aspx

Elaine Alquist (D)

Phone: (916)651-4013

Fax: (916)324-0283

Gilroy

Phone: (408)847-6101

Fax: (408)847-6096

senator.alquist@sen.ca.gov

http://dist13.casen.govoffice.com/

Joel Anderson (R)

Phone: (916) 651-4036
Fax: (916) 447-9008

TemeculaPhone: 951-676-1020
Fax: (951) 676-1030

El CajonPhone: (619) 596-3136
Fax: (619) 596-3140

http://cssrc.us/web/36/contact_me.aspx

Sam Blakeslee (R)

Phone: (916) 651-4015
Fax: (916) 445-8081

San Luis ObispoPhone: (916) 651-4015
Fax: (916) 445-8081

http://cssrc.us/web/15/contact_me.aspx

Kevin de Leon (D)

Phone: (916) 651-4022

Fax: (916) 327-8817

Los Angeles

Phone: (213) 612-9566

Fax: (213) 612-9591

http://sd22.senate.ca.gov/

Mark DeSaulnier (D)

Phone: (916) 651-4007
Fax: (916) 445-2527

Walnut Creek Phone:(925) 942-6082
Fax: (925) 942-6087

http://sd07.senate.ca.gov/contact

Michael Rubio (D)

Phone: (916) 651-4016
Fax: (916) 327-5989

Fresno Phone: (559) 264-3070
Fax: (559) 445-6506

Bakersfield

Phone: (661) 395-2620
Fax: (661) 395-2622

http://sd16.senate.ca.gov/contact/email-me

Lois Wolk (D) Senate Sponsor for AB2109

Phone: (916) 651-4005

Fax: (916)323-2304

Vacaville

Phone: (707)454-3808

Fax: (707) 454-3811

Stockton

Phone:

(209)948-7930

Fax: (209) 948-7993

senator.wolk@senate.ca.gov

http://sd05.senate.ca.gov/