Michelle Malkin talks about opting out and the hurdles faced.
Freedom would be opting in.
Instead of making the vaccine mandatory, "what we should of done was a program that frankly allowed them to opt in or some type of program like that," Perry told the New Hampshire gathering.
This is just a damned travesty.
Yep, I read this a while back. The opt out is a nightmare. Those who act like it was easy to do are misinformed or all out liars.
She is discussing the general Texas opt-out, not the online version Perry was instituting.
On the other hand, opting out in Texas today isn't as hard as your link makes it sound. And to be accurate, your link is NOT to something Michelle Malkin said, it's an article by Gary P. Jackson. And everybody should go read it -- it's HYSTERICAL. If you just think exactly about what he is saying, you'll be laughing out loud.
On the other hand, if you don't want to go read it (I urge you to), I'll give you the hilarious highlights:
“Opt-out” or Conscientious Exemption to Vaccination Process is a Bureaucratic NightmareOK, we are now going to be told about the "Bureaucratic Nightmare". You are already picturing it -- standing in long lines to get forms, getting shunted to other lines, having to have 7 forms of identification, being required to justify your request, having a hearing to argue over your request, having to do things in triplicate, meetings at school where people will talk you out of it, a large fee for the privilege. That's what you normally think of when you think of these "nightmares". Please, get worked up, it makes this all the more funny:
To get the exemption form, parents must first submit a written form to State Health Department in Austin which forces the disclosure of the child’s full name, birthdate, and mailing address.Oh My Goodness. How horrible. They want the kids "full name" (no skipping that pesky middle name you hated); And his BIRTHDATE, because you wanted to keep that hidden. And who do they think they are, getting a MAILING address? Why, it's almost as if they want to be able to MAIL you a RESPONSE. Seriously -- Cynthia Q. Child, 6/24/1999, 101 east street, Austin Tx, 01234. That is what they consider a horrible invasion of privacy.
Remember, this is for school -- a school which already has your birth certificate to ensure you are the right age for school (unless you are illegal). They asked for more information to sign my kids up for summer soccer. But wait, it gets better. Now that we had to fill out a whole line of basic information identifying the child we are opting out of their program, they then make us MAIL IT IN!!!
Oh wait -- the guy doesn't tell you that this entire form is online, so you can do this whole process, which took me about 30 seconds in a test run, ONLINE and submit it. If a 30-second form is a "bearuocratic nightmare", I'd hate to see these poor people filling out their free lunch program forms.
But wait, now there's even MORE:
The Health Department takes those written requests and creates yet another form on which they print the child’s same personal information that the parent had to send to health department, and the Health Department sometimes takes weeks to mail out these forms inevitably disrupting the child’s school attendance.Note that none of this part involved the parent. That's what the state does -- they take the request, and fill out an official form designating the opt-out, which will list the vaccines so you can check off which ones you are opting out of. And while they provide a "horror" scenario fo taking weeks, the law governoring this requires them to turn this around much quicker.
However, it is certainly true that you want to start this process early, because you need this form on the first day of school. So do it a few months ahead. I guess these guys never had to get a passport for travel -- try doing THAT two days before travel, and you'll learn what a bearauocratic nightmare is.
Now, they send you a form back, and things REALLY GET complicated:
The Health Department only sends the forms by U.S. mail,Well, I guess sending it by pony express would be better? Or are they supposed to get it through the Mexican post office? Seriously, do they think the forms should be fed-ex'd to people's homes? A "BN" would make you go to the government office to sign for the form.
and once the parent receives the forms, they must be notarized within 90 days of submitting themRemember how two sentences ago they said how it took so long to get the forms mailed that parents ran up against school deadlines? Now they say the problem is a parent might want to wait MORE THAN 3 MONTHS, but they aren't allowed to. Which is it guys? Why would you request the form, and then wait more than 90 days to sign it and turn it in?
and then repeatedly resubmitted every 2 years even though there is no expiration set in statute."repeatedly resubmitted" = "resubmitted". Repeatedly was just added because it makes it sound more onimous. What they are really saying is you re-submit the paperwork once every 2 years, to confirm you are still opting out. And yes, that IS in the new statute that was passed after 2003, and if you did the form before 2003 you don't have to do ANY of this, the old form is grandfathered in.
So there you have it, the horrible process of Texas opt-out: Take 30 seconds to fill out an online form with the most basic information about your child. Submit it. Wait a while. You get a form, you check off which vaccines you are opting out of, sign it at your local bank when you deposit your paycheck the next week, and turn it in. There is no review, your submittal grants the opt-out.
And remember, under Perry's UNIMPLEMENTED EO, this already simple process would have been replaced by an online form to actually request the opt-out.