Measles outbreaks in other states highlight public health officials’ lack of access to Montana’s school vaccination data, which the state stopped collecting through a 2021 law.
Lawmakers Tuesday heard a bill that would restart the state public health department's collection of student immunization and exemption numbers as anonymous data. Sponsor Democratic Representative Melody Cunningham of Missoula spoke to House Bill 364 in front of members of the Senate Education and Cultural Resources Committee.
“Montana right now is the only state that doesn’t submit this information to their department of public health, and this includes our surrounding states which we sometimes look to, of Idaho, North Dakota, South Dakota and Wyoming,” said Cunningham.
The bill would require schools to submit an annual report to the Montana Department of Health and Human Services with the number of fully vaccinated and exempted students. A state public health official voiced support of the bill and said the lack of data about school vaccination rates makes it more challenging for health officials to understand group immunity for potential outbreaks of highly contagious diseases like measles.
Data collection policies in years past have clashed with privacy and parental rights in the state legislature. Opponents of the bill include volunteer child health advocate Jessica Kirkendall who said allowing the government to collect information like that is an overreach.
“Our Montana school children deserve medical privacy protections just as adults have,” said Kirkendall.
HB 364 is only one bill under consideration that touches on data and privacy concerns.
House Bill 599 would ensure parents’ right to be notified and opt out of school information collection like physical and mental health surveys or screenings. It would also guard against identification of students in data about bullying, school performance and other education metrics while preserving ongoing protections for health information. The Senate Education and Cultural Resources Committee is scheduled to hear that bill Thursday, April 3.
