CT vaccine bill approved as controversial lawsuit plays out in court over religious freedom

The Connecticut state Senate voted 22-12 to approve a bill that adds an exception to the state's Religious Freedom Restoration Act for school immunizations. The bill was requested by Attorney General William Tong to address a lawsuit by three families seeking to reinstate a religious exemption to required school vaccinations. The legislation explicitly states the exception will apply to any civil litigation pending or filed on the date of its signing. Governor Ned Lamont plans to sign the bill into law. The lawsuit involves three families from Orange, Greenwich, and Stafford Springs who have children that fell under a grandfather clause in the 2021 repeal law. The Connecticut Supreme Court ruled in 2024 that the lawsuit could proceed based on the families' statutory claims under the religious freedom law.