Can my child be denied financial welfare assistance from government aid programs for failing to provide proof of vaccination?
No. The rules and regulations that apply to the Department of Children and Family Services include provisions for religious exemption. Florida Administrative Code 65A-4.216 Immunization Program section (1) states: “A child whose needs have been removed from the temporary cash assistance grant due to failure of the recipient to provide verification of immunization(s) or exemption through good cause will remain eligible for Medicaid. The child’s needs will be reinstated when the individual provides proof that the immunization sequence has started and is up-to-date or completed or if good cause for failure to immunize exists. Examples of good cause exemptions from the immunization requirements include religious reasons or a permanent medical condition that prohibits immunization.” The provisions for this Administrative Code are derived from Florida statute 414.13 which states that vaccination requirements must be waived if the failure to vaccinate is because of religious reasons. The Reli
