These are several different templates for you to use when submitting your religious exemption to your employer, health care or otherwise. Select the option that best fits your individual circumstances and employer. Adapt your religious exemption as needed. OPTION 1: IF YOUR EMPLOYER IS NOT REQUIRING THAT YOU ANSWER QUESTIONS IN YOUR RELIGIOUS EXEMPTION FORM AND YOU ARE SEEKING ONLY AN EXEMPTION FROM COVID-19: The immunization laws of North Carolina are against my bona fide religious beliefs. I therefore claim a religious exemption for a vaccination or immunization for COVID-19 or any variants thereof. -OR- The immunization laws of North Carolina and rules of [your employer] are against my bona fide religious beliefs. I therefore claim a religious exemption for a vaccination or immunization for COVID-19 or any variants thereof. OPTION 2: IF YOUR EMPLOYER IS NOT REQUIRING THAT YOU ANSWER QUESTIONS IN YOUR RELIGIOUS EXEMPTION FORM AND YOU ARE SEEKING AN EXEMPTION FROM ALL VACCINES AND IMMUNIZATIONS: The immunization laws of North Carolina are against my bona fide religious beliefs. I therefore claim a religious exemption for all vaccinations and immunizations. -OR- The immunization laws of North Carolina and rules of [your employer] are against my bona fide religious beliefs. I therefore claim a religious exemption for all vaccinations and immunizations. OPTION 3: IF YOUR EMPLOYER IS REQUIRING THAT YOU ANSWER QUESTIONS IN YOUR RELIGIOUS EXEMPTION FORM AND YOU ARE SEEKING ONLY AN EXEMPTION FROM COVID-19: I will not be coerced or mandated to take a vaccination or immunization for COVID-19 or any variants thereof (COVID-19 vaccine). My bona fide personal religious beliefs about life, purpose, health, and death are sincerely held. My bona fide personal religious beliefs are of chief importance in my life, and I live bythose beliefs. I consider the acceptance of COVID-19 vaccine on a healthy body as a betrayal of my bona fide personal religious beliefs. I decline to receive the COVID-19 vaccine, and exercise my right to assert and receive a religious exemption for the COVID-19 vaccine. OPTION 4: IF YOUR EMPLOYER IS REQUIRING THAT YOU ANSWER QUESTIONS IN YOUR RELIGIOUS EXEMPTION FORM AND YOU ARE SEEKING AN EXEMPTION FROM ALL VACCINES AND IMMUNIZATIONS: I will not be coerced or mandated to take any vaccination and immunization. My bona fide personal religious beliefs about life, purpose, health, and death are sincerely held. My bona fide personal religious beliefs are of chief importance in my life, and I live by those beliefs. I consider the acceptance of any vaccination and immunization on a healthy body as a betrayal of my bona fide personal religious beliefs. I decline to receive any vaccination and immunization, and exercise my right to assert and receive a religious exemption for any vaccination and immunization. OPTION 5: IF YOUR EMPLOYER IS REQUIRING THAT YOU ANSWER QUESTIONS IN YOUR RELIGIOUS EXEMPTION FORM AND YOU ARE SEEKING ONLY AN EXEMPTION FROM COVID-19: I will not be coerced or mandated to take a vaccination or immunization for COVID-19 or any variants thereof (COVID-19 vaccine). My bona fide personal religious beliefs about life, purpose, health, and death are sincerely held. My bona fide personal religious beliefs are of chief importance in my life, and I live by those beliefs. COVID-19 vaccine (Johnson & Johnson, Pfizer, and Moderna) are tainted by abortion-derived fetal cells. The Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine utilized abortion-derived fetal cells in its design, development, production, and testing. The Pfizer and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines utilized abortion-derived fetal cells in their testing. My receiving any of these COVID-19 vaccines would therefore violate my bona fide personal religious beliefs about the sanctity of life and the lives of the unborn. I consider the acceptance of COVID-19 vaccine on a healthy body as a betrayal of my bona fide personal religious beliefs. I decline to receive the COVID-19 vaccine, and exercise my right to assert and receive a religious exemption for the COVID-19 vaccine.___________________________________________________ Get ALL The Facts ~ Investigate Before You Vaccinate! Click here for exemptions for North Carolina residents Vaccine Exemptions By State http://www.NVIC.org Hepatitis B Exemption for Healthcare Workers “In a 1979 consultation on the issue, the United States Commission on Civil Rights defined religious discrimination in relation to the civil rights guaranteed by the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution. Whereas religious civil liberties, such as the right to hold or not to hold a religious belief, are essential for Freedom of Religion (in the United States secured by the First Amendment), religious discrimination occurs when someone is denied “the equal protection of the laws, equality of status under the law, equal treatment in the administration of justice, and equality of opportunity and access to employment, education, housing, public services and facilities, and public accommodation because of their exercise of their right to religious freedom.”[1] Harvard Law School” http://www.osha.gov/pls/oshaweb/owadisp.show_document?p_table=STANDARDS&p_id=10052http://www.osha.gov/SLTC/etools/hospital/hazards/bbp/declination.html Question: By OSHA not requiring the hepatitis B shot, can a person exempt themselves and still gain (or keep) employment in the healthcare field? Answer from Sherri Tenpenny, DO: Yes, they can keep their employment and, if they get a future needle stick and get, say, hep b or hep c, they can still claim worker’s comp if they file an employee report at the time of the incident. Like with school exemptions (that most principles, teachers and parents don’t know exist), most employers don’t know that the OSHA exemption exists. Travel Vaccines For information on the vaccination requirements for foreign countries, go to the CDC website at www.cdc.gov/travel/index.htm[PAVE note: PAVE does not advocate the use of vaccines. The above information is from the Centers for Disease Control and does not reflect PAVE’s beliefs.] Travel, Immigration & Vaccination Information on traveling outside the US without “required” vaccines. State Vaccination Registries Each state has an immunization registry to track your child’s vaccination status. If you aren’t sure what your state is doing in the area of immunization registries, check this out. http://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/programs/iis/contacts-registry-staff.html Boy Scouts and Exemptions http://www.scouting.org/filestore/pdf/25-02.pdf Vaccine Truth Medical exemptions, Religious exemptions and Philosophical exemptions are available. Religious Exemptions to North Carolina’s Childhood Immunization Requirements What Constitutes a Bona Fide Religious Belief? Protecting Children from Mercury-Containing Drugs The United Methodist Churchwww.umc.org/what-we-believe/protecting-children-from-mercury-containing-drugs Alliance Defense Fund www.alliancedefendingfreedom.orgHelp for those whose religious exemption rights may be threatened. Healthcare Workers: How to Refuse Mandatory Vaccines and Not Get Fired Exemption Information for Healthcare Workers http://vaclib.org/legal/employermandates.htm Rules regarding a medical exemption 10A NCAC 41A.0404 (2006).0404 MEDICAL EXEMPTIONS FROM IMMUNIZATION(a) Certification of a medical exemption by a physician pursuant to G.S. 130A-156 shall be in writing and shall state the basis of the exemption, the specific vaccine or vaccines the individual should not receive, and the length of time the exemption will apply for the individual.(b) Medical contraindications for which medical exemptions may be certified by a physician for immunizations are included in the most recent General Recommendations of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, Public Health Services, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, published in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention publication, the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, which is adopted by reference including subsequent amendments and additions. A copy is available for inspection in the Immunization Section at 1330 St. Mary’s Street, Raleigh, North Carolina. http://www.nvic.org/NVIC-Vaccine-News/February-2011/College-Bound—Navigating-Vaccine-Choices.aspx College Bound – Navigating Vaccine Choices By Theresa Wrangham, NVIC Executive Director Recently, I responded to one of our reader’s vaccination choice concerns regarding college bound young adults and many of these young adults will soon be deciding which college to attend in the fall. I have these concerns myself now, as my youngest is also off to college this year. As a parent, I have learned that the informed consent movement that NVIC founded and the values we in turn have taken into our home really transfer to our college bound daughter. It is not easy to step aside, but as we do, we are empowering our daughter to ask the right questions as she decides which college to attend.This article will address concerns held by families and young adults who are college bound and choose to alternately vaccinate, or do not vaccinate at all. As they enter college, they will face pressure to receive vaccines for meningitis, HPV, and influenza, among others. Whatever decisions our sons and daughters make in this respect, make no mistake – it is their decision to make and defend.Although parents are no longer directly involved with these healthcare decisions, parents can help their sons and daughters find accurate information and resources regarding: * the risks of the vaccine they are being asked by the college to receive;* the risks of the disease for which they are considering vaccination;* and their rights to informed consent in the vaccine decision-making process. For reliable facts helpful in evaluating the risks discussed in the first two points above, our webpage on diseases and vaccines is an excellent resource and should be recommended to prospective college students. When a decision is made to decline a vaccine, it is crucial for the incoming college student to understand what the legal and policy requirements are in order for them to be able to continue to be enrolled and meet their program requirements. College Vaccination – What is Required? Understanding college vaccination policies and state exemption laws are a critical part of the information gathering process. Having taken calls from parents of students suspended from attending college until their vaccinations are up to date, we are not leaving admission to our daughter’s dream college to chance. We have personally found it helpful to proactively:* ask the admissions officer for the school’s vaccination policy in writing (should be on the institution’s letterhead); * and research the state’s exemption laws when considering colleges.In general, college vaccination policies must comply with the legal exemptions to vaccination outlined in each state’s public health laws. Unforeseen trouble may come up later if the student is going into a health profession that requires clinical practice during their course of study. In that instance, the facility providing the clinical experience necessary for graduation requirements could have vaccination requirements for students, who are in direct contact with patients. It is better to have this information in advance. There are times when exceptions are made for medical contraindications and/or proof of existing antibodies, but these exceptions are on a case-by-case basis and policies governing vaccination could change before graduation. Helpful Tips for Gathering Information Below are guidelines to assist families in gathering information that empowers their college bound student’s understanding of the vaccination landscape in their state. Much of the information below can be found on our website under FAQs and although NVIC continually updates our website, state laws and rules change frequently and the website content may not reflect all recent changes to laws.* Research the state exemption laws for colleges under consideration. Le gal requirements of vaccination laws differ state to state. Recognized legal exemptions are medical, religious and conscientious, philosophical or personal belief exemptions. Wording and scope of exemptions can differ from state to state, so do your homework! * State laws that govern exemptions sometimes don’t extend to private schools, which can institute any vaccine requirements they deem appropriate. Exemptions differ state to state and are dependent on the laws of each state.* Be aware of the difference between a legal requirement and a recommendation. For example, while vaccine policymakers at the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) have included the meningitis vaccine in their recommendations for first year college students living in dormitories, the state of Alaska requires only that college students receive information on the disease, vaccine and their increased risk of contracting meningitis if living in student housing. In this example the student must either agree to be vaccinated for meningitis, or sign a waiver verifying that they received the information and have waived vaccination.* Some states allow exemption from vaccination, or revaccination, if there is proofof existing antibodies. These antibodies can sometimes be determined by a private laboratory with a blood test to check titers. Titer tests are not available for all diseases for which a vaccine is available and acceptance of titer test results vary state to state. Again, check with the public health laws governing the state in question to determine what titer tests are acceptable.* Stay up-to-date on state exemptions and vaccination issues in the state of attendance, as requirements can change! NVIC maintains a webpage updated with state-by-state exemption information. NVIC has also recently launched its State Advocacy Portal and individuals can sign up to receive free eNewsletters on vaccine policy and law changes underway in their state, as well as tips for protecting your legal right to obtain an exemption to vaccination.There are three types of vaccination exemptions:* Philosophical Exemption:There are 18 states which allow exemption to vaccination based on philosophical, personal or conscientiously held beliefs. In many of these states, individuals must object to all vaccines, not just a particular vaccine in order to use the philosophical, conscientious or personal belief exemption. This type of exemption is being threatened in some state legislatures due to pressure from government health officials, drug company lobbyists and medical organizations to revoke this exemption.* All states except Mississippi and West Virginia allow for a religious exemption tovaccination. The religious exemption is intended for people who hold a sincere religious belief opposing vaccination but those beliefs can be personally held and church membership or adherence to an organized religion is not required. However, you should be able to articulate in your own words why your sincerely held religious or spiritual beliefs do not allow you to vaccinate yourself or your child with one or more vaccines. Sometimes obtaining a letter from your pastor or spiritual adviser attesting to the sincerity of your religious beliefs about vaccination is helpful, as well. Some religious exemptions are broadly defined and similar to philosophical or conscientious belief exemptions. * Medical Exemptions: All 50 states allow medical exemption to vaccination. Proof of medical exemption must take the form of a signed statement by a medical doctor, or doctor of osteopathy that the administering of one or more vaccines would be detrimental to the health of an individual. Some states will accept a private physician’s written exemption without question. Other states allow the state health department to review the doctor’s exemption and revoke it if health department officials do not think the exemption is justified. My advice to our readers is to take the time to research the vaccination laws of the state in question, the specific policies of the college and program being considered and empower your student with information well in advance of selecting the college of their dreams and beginning their journey into adulthood.