1. Send Your Testimony

 Consider sending the testimony to submitted to the Joint Committee on Public Health  opposing H.2554/S.1557 to the targets listed here. Be sure to add the legislative ask detailed below. 

2. Send Additional Emails 

We are sending emails daily until August 1st. 

Below are questions and prompts to help you think critically and craft your own message to OPPOSE H.2554—DO NOT COPY AND PASTE, CRAFT POINTS INTO YOUR OWN PERSONAL MESSAGE. 

Legislative Ask:

• Refer H.2554 to a Fiscal or Policy Committee: As was done in previous sessions, to ensure full review.
• Do Not Advance to the House Floor: Protect families, uphold constitutional rights, and avoid unnecessary harm.
• Consider asking their position on this bill. 

Comprehensive Opposition Talking Points to H.2554

Key Fiscal, Operational, and Equity Arguments for Committee Referral:

• Premature House Floor Placement: Unlike prior sessions, H.2554 was not referred to fiscal committees (e.g., Ways & Means or Health Care Financing), bypassing necessary review despite its clear financial and systemic impacts.
• Real Fiscal Burdens: Implementation will require added staffing and oversight by the Department of Public Health to manage expanded reporting and enforcement.
• Costly to Schools: Districts, especially in Gateway Cities and rural towns, will face declining enrollment, reducing Chapter 70 funding.
• Administrative Strain: Schools already short on staff (particularly nurses and administrators in low-income areas) will bear compliance burdens without additional resources.
• Litigation Risk: Eliminating long-standing religious rights without alternatives exposes the state to legal liability.

Broader Harms to Students and Families:

• Excludes Over 10,000 Students: Many families may be forced to homeschool or leave Massachusetts entirely.
• Loss of Educational Access: Excluded students face lifelong harm—from learning loss to reduced economic mobility and long-term health outcomes.
• Disproportionate Impact: Students from low-resource communities and religious minorities will be hardest hit.
• Loss of Special Education Services: Students with special needs will lose access to federally mandated supports available only in school settings.
• Post-COVID Learning Loss: This bill compounds learning loss already experienced due to pandemic closures and disruption.

Equity and Civil Rights Concerns:

• Religious Discrimination: The bill targets those with sincerely held religious beliefs, violating First Amendment protections.
• Segregation by Belief: Removing the exemption creates a two-tiered system where only select beliefs are respected.
• Contradicts State DEI Goals: Undermines Governor Healey’s stated commitments to diversity, equity, and inclusion.
• Disproportionate Impact on Marginalized Groups: Single-parent households, immigrant families, and low-income students will suffer most.
• Mental Health Toll: Exclusion causes social isolation and emotional distress, especially post-COVID.

Policy Alternatives and Public Health Balance:

• Existing Protocols Work: Exclusion protocols during outbreaks are already in place and effective.
• Small Affected Population: Only about 1% of students use religious exemptions; this is not a widespread public health threat.
• Rise in Exemptions Mirrors Vaccine Dose Increases: The increase in exemptions parallels an increase in mandated doses (from 8 to 20), not necessarily a shift in public sentiment.
• Vaccine Hesitancy Risk: Forcing compliance undermines public trust and deepens vaccine hesitancy.

Constitutional and Moral Arguments:

• Parental Rights: The bill infringes on the rights of parents to make medical and religious decisions for their children.
• First Amendment Protections: Courts have affirmed that religious beliefs don’t need to be popular to be protected.
• My Body, My Choice: Bodily autonomy must be respected across all medical decisions.
• Public School Access is a Right: Denying education based on belief contradicts the constitutional mandate to educate all children.
• Double Standard: Massachusetts welcomes migrants fleeing persecution but denies access to education to its own citizens for religious reasons.