The Forest Republican. [volume] (Tionesta, Pa.) 1869-1952, 1906-12-12
Health Commissioner Dixon Ex.
plains Provision That Is Made In
Such Cases So That Children May
Not Be Debarred From School,
WHEN CLAIM is MADE
THAT "cHlLD IS UNFlTn
In Exceptional Gases, Where Careful
Investigation BY Local or state
Health Authorities Justlfies AdmIs.

child have failed. that child should not
be debarred from school privileges. but
should be admitted. and the Depart.
ment of Health has provided for this. u
said State Health Commissioner Sam.
uel G Dixon In an interview.
The Supreme Court OF Pennsylva.
MIA" continued DR.. Dixon, called at.
tertion in the recent opinion 1t handed
down reatirming the validity Of the so.
called vaccination law of June IS, 1895.
to the hardship involved In the twelfth
section of that act when 1t Is beyond
the power of children of school age to
be vaccinnted. although they may not
previously have had smallpox nor pre-
viously been vaccinated, and even re.
peated attempts to perform the oper.
alton upon such children are without
effect and vaccination will not take.
In such cases. as the court pointed
out, the physician cannot certify that
| such child has been successfully vac.
cinated so as to meet the requirement
of admission to school. The courts de-
cision suggested the possibility of the
health authorities. state or local, max.
ing a regulation setting forth the con.
ditions under which child upon whom
vaccination will not take, may be per.
mitted to go to school. The court also
suggests that the health authorities
would have to consider whether such
regulation would be undesirable as
affording opportunity for the evasion
Of the statute.
"The Department OF Health" con.
tinued Health Commissioner Dixon.
has taken this tendency to evade the
law into consideration. as 1t was
Obliged to, and yet we have endeav.
ored to see that those children who
could not be vaccinated should be ad.
mitted to school. Our method of &C.
complishing this from the first has
been as follows:
When the cases that we received
inquiry about were within the limits
of borough or city having a Board of
Health of its own, we suggested that
after two unsuccessful attempts to vac.
cinate child the third attempt be
made by or in the presence of the
physician OF the Board of Health. II
this attempt failed, then the physician
of the board acting in his official ca.
pacity. should authorize the admission
of the child.
In the rural districts, where there
are no Boards of Health to pass upon
such cases, | have always asked that
after three unsuccessful attempts to
vaccinate child have been made, the
name of the child and the physician
who made the attempts be referred i'm.
mediately to the State Department of
Health. The cases have then been at
once investigated by our County Medi.
cal Inspectors or some one deputized
by them, so that the child might not
unjustly be debarred from school privi.
leges. These methods of dealing with
the situation have been In conformity
with the Supreme Courts suggestion
that the health authorities assume the
responsibility of authorizing the ad.
mission to school of children upon
whom. after a reasonable number of
attempts, vaccination does not take.
Taking advantage of the spirit OF
this part Of the Supreme Courts opin.
ion we have also endeavored to deal
with the cases of children where there
was reason to believe that the childs
physical condition did not make vac.
cination at the present time advisable.
The Attorney General of the State had
given an opinion that teacher was
not authorized to accept a certificate
from a physician stating that the child
was not in physical condition to be
yaccinated. 1t is reasonable to be-
lieve, however that although the sim.
pie giving of such a certificate by the
family physician would not be suffl.
cient, the spirit Of the Supreme Courts
opinion would permit the recognized
health authorities throughout the
state. after careful investigation, to
pass upon such cases.
Therefore when such cases are now
brought to the attention of our depart.
ment. we have suggested that inside
borough or city limits. the local Board
of Health, through its physician, de.
eide whether the child is we'll enough
to attend school and yet not in a fit
condition to be vaccinated. In the dis.
tricts where there are no Boards of
Health we are having such cases In.
vestigated and passed upon by our
regular County Medical Inspectors.
"It will thus be seen" concluded DR..
Dixon, that the State Department of
Health is doing everything possible to
prevent any child from being unjustly
deprived of its schooling. If the par.
ent or guardian, however. refuses to
permit child to be vaccinated simply |
through prejudice. the health authori- |
ties certainly have no power to inter. |
fere with the operation of the law. In |
such cases we have done everything
we could to overcome this prejudice |
by education. so that the innocent |
child might not be made to suffer be- |
cause the parent desired to leave Il
exposed to the ravages of smallpox
rather than undergo vaccination, which |
the Legislature of Pennsylvania, in the
exercise Of its police power. has made
one of the requisites of admission to
school,"