Senator John McGee

This Week’s Updates

Updates - 6 months ago - John McGee

This week in the Idaho State Legislature, the Senate passed legislation to expand the reach of Idaho’s voluntary child IRIS immunization reminder system by making it an “opt-out” for parents of newborns rather than requiring them to actively “opt-in”. My co-sponsor, Senate Health and Welfare Chairwoman Patti Anne Lodge, and I have received support from many health-related organizations including the Idaho Medical Association and the Idaho Hospital Association.

Currently, according to the Idaho Division of Health, a mere 57.6 percent of Idaho’s children have had their recommended immunizations. This statistic is not one to be proud of, especially when compared to the national average, which is 77.2 percent. Idaho’s immunization rates are so low that our rate for measles is lower than that of Indonesia, Pakistan or Croatia, and our rate for polio is below that of Botswana, Latvia and Sri Lanka. This legislation will help increase the percentage of children who have had their recommended immunizations.

Also this week, the Senate Education Committee voted unanimously in favor of HB 544, which would create a higher education stabilization fund, into which the state would deposit money in positive economic times to help out state colleges and universities during downturns like we are currently facing. Obviously, we can’t utilize such a fund at this time, but we hope to use this concept in the event of future downturns.