By Mike Cason
The Alabama Legislature passed a bill Thursday night requiring parental consent for minors, people under age 19, to receive COVID-19 vaccinations.
Gov. Kay Ivey signed the bill into law Friday.
The new law creates an exception to Alabama law that sets age 14 as the age of consent for medical treatments. The new law does not affect any other vaccinations or treatments.
The Senate voted 25-1 for the bill, with Senate Minority Leader Bobby Singleton, D-Greensboro, casting the only no vote.
Twenty-four of the Senate’s 27 Republicans voted for the bill. The other three were recording as passing, which means they were absent or did not vote.
The only Democrat to vote for the bill in either chamber was Sen. Billy Beasley, D-Clayton. Six other Democrats in the Senate passed.
The House passed the bill 59-19, with all the yes votes coming from Republicans and all the no votes from Democrats.
The new law takes effect immediately. Besides requiring parental consent for a COVID-19 vaccine, it requires parental consent for a school or college to inquire about a minor student’s COVID-19 vaccine status.
To read the full article, visit AL.com
