New Jersey parents submitted almost 9,000 religious exemptions against vaccinating children last year

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published 3 February 2015

On Monday, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie's office was quick to backtrack on a statement he made about giving parents the freedom to choose whether to vaccinate their children. His office issued a statement that "with a disease like measles, there is no question kids should be vaccinated." But a new report from Capital New York found that parents' choosing not to vaccinate their children has been on the rise in New Jersey for several years.

When Christie ran for office in 2009, he expressed support for "greater parental involvement in vaccination decisions." Now, Capital New York reports that during the 2013-2014 school year, New Jersey parents submitted 8,977 religious exemptions from vaccinations, a fourfold increase from the 2005-2006 school year.

Capital New York notes that New Jersey "provides parents with lots of choice in the form of a broad religious exemption." Parents can submit requests for exemptions on the state health department's website, and the state's number of unvaccinated children continues to increase, thanks to the policy.