Q. What is AB 659, and what does it do?
A. AB 659, or the Cancer Prevention Act, was passed into law in 2023. This bill as signed into law simply requires school administrators, in both public and private schools, to send a notification to parents of children entering the sixth grade about the recommendation of HPV vaccination. This bill does not mandate the HPV vaccine for any students.
Q. I was told by my school that my child needs the HPV vaccine. Do I have to vaccinate them before they enter eighth grade?
A. Code Section 120336 of the Health and Safety Code states that schools must provide a “notification containing a statement about the state’s public policy… and advising that the pupil adhere to current HPV immunization guidelines”. This notification is not a statement of law, it is a recommendation by the state and is therefore not a legal requirement. Schools do not have legal standing to deny your child entry to the eighth grade if they have not received the HPV vaccine.
Q. I homeschool my children. Do I have to send a notification to myself as both the school’s administrator and the parent?
A. No, there is an exemption to the notification requirement for home-based private schools. There is no notification or vaccination requirement for homeschooling families. There is no further action required on the part of homeschooling parents or children as an effect of this bill.
Q. I run a private school, and I am being told by the state that my students must receive the HPV vaccine. Is this true?
A. AB 659 does require private campus schools to notify parents of the state’s recommendation concerning HPV vaccination but does not create a vaccination requirement for public or private schools. The only form of school exempt from the notification requirement is home-based private schools.
Q. What about my PSP? I run a PSP and received a notice that I’m supposed to notify students about the HPV vaccine. Do I need to do this?
A. If your PSP is limited to homeschooled students (home-base private school students) then the notice requirements for private schools do not apply to your school.
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