COMMENTARY:
Over the last 45 years, there has been a dramatic increase in the number of vaccinations given to children in the USA. In 1980, the Federal government recommended that children receive 23 vaccine doses in 7 shots against 7 different diseases. By 2024, that had risen to 84 vaccine doses in 57 shots for 18 diseases.
According to a study of children’s health from 2007 to 2023, “US children’s health has deteriorated.” American children have higher rates of mortality, obesity, chronic health problems, and learning disabilities compared to peer nations. In aiming to improve children’s health, the Federal government recently reduced the number of recommended vaccines for all children from 18 down to 11. For the vaccines that are no longer recommended for all children, the Federal government recommends shared clinical decision-making, where parents and doctors are partners in determining the best course of action for each child individually.
Despite these changes in Federal guidance, the NM Department of Health has stated that there will be no changes to the list of required vaccinations for NM children. As such, the NM Department of Health is continuing to mandate 3 vaccines that the Federal government no longer recommends for all children: Hepatitis A, Hepatitis B, and Meningococcal.
The New Mexico Department of Health mandates vaccination for children, whether they attend public school, private school, or home school. According to the new 2026 state law HB156, New Mexico’s vaccination mandates now apply to infants and young children in daycare centers as well as school-aged children. Parents need to be aware that, by state law, vaccine exemptions are allowed for medical or religious reasons. The exemption form is at www.tinyurl.com/nmveform.
Medical exemptions for vaccination are notoriously difficult to obtain, but all families have the right to religious exemption from mandated vaccinations. The basis for religious exemptions can be either jointly-held religious beliefs or personally-held religious beliefs. NM vaccine exemptions only last for 12 months, so the exemption form must be re-submitted annually.
The NM Department of Health has been capricious in evaluating religious exemption forms submitted by parents. For instance, some parents have received exemption denials even when submitting an exemption form filled out identically to a prior year’s form which was approved. For this reason, it may be best for parents to use wording such as the following on their exemption form: "I hereby certify that my religious beliefs, held either individually or jointly with others, do not permit the administration of vaccines or other immunizing agents to my child.” There is more guidance for how to fill out vaccine exemption forms at www.tinyurl.com/vexemption.
Parents should also be aware that, since 2013, the NM Department of Health has been tracking the vaccination status of both children and adults across the state in the New Mexico Statewide Immunization Information System (NMSIIS). By 2013 state law SB58, healthcare providers are required to report vaccination status unless a person or parent/guardian "refuses to allow reporting of this information." This means that, every time a person either receives or declines a vaccination, it is reported to the NMSIIS.
This information could potentially be used to limit a person’s activities or access to essential services during a public health emergency. For instance, the childhood vaccination exemption form states that "where any case of communicable disease occurs or is likely to occur in my child’s school, the Department of Health may require the exclusion of infected persons and non-immunized persons."
Parents who do not want the state to track their children’s vaccination status (or their own vaccination status) are allowed to opt-out of the NMSIIS via this form: www.tinyurl.com/nmsiisoptout This form must be submitted to the healthcare provider every time vaccinations are received or declined in order for the opt-out to continue.
Additionally, this same form can be used to require the NMSIIS to delete an existing record for a child or an adult, by submitting the form to the NM Department of Health. The full policies and procedures document for the NMSIIS is available on NM Department of Health website. The phone number for the NMSIIS Help Desk is 1-833-882-6454 and the email address for requesting that a record be deleted from NMSIIS is NMSIIS.access@doh.nm.gov
Sarah Smith co-leads the New Mexico Freedoms Alliance (a non-partisan statewide grassroots coalition) and is the New Mexico State Director for Stand for Health Freedom. As a mother of two teens, Sarah advocates for medical freedom, better education, and a safer community. Sarah also organizes a homeschool group for 125+ families, is a natural healthcare practitioner, and is a former NASA aerospace engineer. Sarah can be reached at concernedfornm@gmail.com.
Sarah Smith's opinions are her own and do not necessarily reflect the views of KRWG Public Media or NMSU.