Two bills introduced this week to the state House of Representatives could change the rules on exemptions from school vaccination schedules and how schools report vaccination rates.

A bill introduced by Bridget Kosierowski, D-114th, would require schools to post the number of vaccinated and unvaccinated students on their websites. Currently, schools report that information to the state's Department of Education, which then compiles that data.

Data from the 2017-18 school year reveals 5.2 percent of Butler County students in kindergarten through seventh grade were granted medical, religious or philosophical exemptions from the required vaccine schedules.

But Brian White, superintendent of Butler Area School District, contends the current program of reporting the information to the state does not need an additional requirement.

“I'm all for transparency, but if we are required to report these numbers to the state, why don't they publish them?” he asked.

State Rep. Daryl Metcalfe, R-12th, said the law would violate students' privacy because somebody would have to see the raw data to form aggregate numbers of students who are and are not vaccinated.

“With regulations and HIPAA (Health Information Portability and Accountability Act) law, all that we have out there related to privacy, it really is concerning, for me as a parent, as a grandparent,” Metcalfe said of the proposed law, adding that “certain liberals like Dan Frankel and others would toss away any privacy concerns to fearmonger on the vaccination issue.”

Because the information remains aggregated and does not reveal any personally identifiable information, Drew Popish, a spokesman for Kosierowski's office, said the proposed law would remain in compliance with federal HIPAA laws.

“This actually will protect the safety and the health of the student, along with respecting their dignity and confidentiality,” Popish said.

The legislation got its start when Kosierowski's oldest son, Jake, was diagnosed with childhood leukemia, which compromises the immune system and leaves those diagnosed unable to be vaccinated. She wanted other parents who had children with similar health conditions to know whether their child's school posed a health risk.

“It's crucial that parents are able to make informed decisions with their child's health and wellness in mind as they step foot into school every day,” Popish added.

Metcalfe believes there's another reason to post the numbers: to peer pressure parents.

“What reason is there behind posting the aggregated numbers?” he asked. “It's all about intimidating people into believing that Big Brother, the government, knows that you're not vaccinated and when a certain percentage of you aren't vaccinated we're going to do something about it.”

State Rep. Dan Frankel, D-23rd, also introduced vaccine-related legislation this week. That bill would require parents who receive a philosophical exemption — that is, one not based a specific medical condition or religion — to renew the exemption annually after visiting a health care professional.

“They should at least have the opportunity, and be required to take advantage of the opportunity, to sit down with a health care professional on an annual basis to understand the consequences, from a health perspective, of not vaccinating their children,” Frankel said.

Under current law, parents must only sign a waiver once, according to Frankel.

“All that is required of a family to get that exemption for their child is to sign a card once, and then it's a done deal,” he said. “That child doesn't ever have to be vaccinated at all, and I believe that that's an insufficient threshold to get that exemption.”

Metcalfe, on the other hand, said the current process for obtaining a philosophical exemption to vaccination is sufficient as it should ultimately be the parent's choice for their child.

“You're already consulting with (health care professionals) when you go into the hospital to have your baby, or when you go and have a wellness visit,” Metcalfe said.

But Frankel argued that annual visits specifically about vaccines will allow doctors to dispel what he calls “bad science” believed by those opposed to vaccinations. He said recognized, mainstream public health authorities such as the American Academy of Pediatrics or the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, are being trashed and accused of conflicts of interest, hiding information, and even being bought off.

“In my view, much of this increase in the number of unvaccinated children, in particular, results from disinformation that has been circulated on the Internet,” Frankel said.

Eagle staff writer Tanner Cole contributed to this report.