Pia Whitesell, an Australian actress, has stated her opposition to a California proposal that would allow preteens to be vaccinated without parental agreement.
The former Home and Away actress, 38, now lives in Malibu with her husband Patrick Whitesell, 56, and her teenage kids Isaiah, 18, and Lennox, 15, from previous relationships.
Late yesterday, a California senator presented legislation that would allow minors aged 12 and above to receive vaccinations without parental consent.
Pia is not anti-vaccination; in June of last year, she stated that she had received two doses of the Pfizer vaccine.
‘I got the Pfizer vaccine,’ says the patient. She informed her Instagram followers at the time, “I was able to acquire my first dose in LA and my second dose at RPA (Royal Prince Alfred Hospital in Sydney).”
Pia later clarified her position on California’s legislation on Instagram Stories on Saturday, writing: ‘I’m not anti-vaccine; my observation is that kids can’t even take an Advil at school without permission from their parents.’
‘So, before this becomes something that it’s not – Yes, I am vaccinated.’
Pia married multimillionaire Hollywood talent agent Patrick in secret early last year, and they now live in a beautiful home in Malibu, California.
Daily Mail Australia has reached out to Pia’s representatives for further comment.Â
Because the state of California currently enables minors over the age of 12 to consent to Hepatitis B and HPV vaccines, as well as treatment for sexually transmitted illnesses, substance misuse, and mental health disorders, San Francisco Democrat Scott Wiener pushed for the change.
Republican Assemblyman James Gallagher, on the other hand, slammed Weiner’s “flawed policy,” claiming that “parents are crucial” in vaccination decisions for children.
‘This appears to me to be another example of Democrats seeking to take parents out of the equation,’ Gallagher said, adding that he believes Wiener will have trouble even in a Legislature dominated by his own party.
According to Wiener, Alabama, Oregon, Rhode Island, and South Carolina enable such decisions at the age of 14. Only Washington, D.C., has a lower age limit, which is 11 years old.
Wiener’s bill would remove the parental need for any vaccination licensed by the US Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, including Covid-19 vaccines, for children under the age of 18.
Children aged 5 and older are currently eligible for coronavirus vaccines, but more than 900,000 of California’s eligible population of more than 3 million, or more than one in four, are unvaccinated, according to Wiener.
‘Giving young people the autonomy to receive life-saving immunizations, independent of their parents’ beliefs or work schedules, is crucial for their physical and mental wellbeing,’ Weiner said late yesterday.
‘It’s awful that teens are denied vaccines because their parents refuse or are unable to accompany their children to a vaccination location.’
Vaccine apprehension and disinformation, according to Wiener, have also hindered vaccinations against measles and other contagious diseases, which can then spread among children whose parents refuse to have them vaccinated.
Governor Gavin Newsom of California introduced the nation’s first coronavirus vaccine requirement for kids in October.
However, it is unlikely to go into force until later this year, and it allows for exclusions for medical, religious, and personal convictions – though politicians may try to limit non-medical exemptions.
Although Wiener’s bill is permissive rather than mandatory, any vaccine law has sparked fierce debate in California and elsewhere.
Even before the pandemic, busloads of opponents flocked to the Capitol, where they stood in line for hours to oppose measures that would allow religious and personal convictions to override the ten immunizations that are now required of schoolchildren.
More than a thousand people demonstrated outside the state Capitol in September to oppose vaccine requirements, despite the fact that lawmakers had postponed consideration of legislation requiring workers to get vaccinated or undergo weekly coronavirus testing in order to keep their jobs.
Republican Assemblyman James Gallagher remarked, “This appears to me to be another example of Democrats seeking to remove parents from the equation.” ‘I believe that policy is flawed. I believe that parents play an important role in these decisions.’
Even under a Democratic-controlled Legislature, he believes Wiener will face challenges.
‘I believe there will be bipartisan support for the idea that parents should be involved in their children’s health care decisions, such as determining what types of medical care and drugs they should take,’ Gallagher predicted.
Wiener and other Democratic lawmakers announced on Wednesday the formation of a “work group” to look into ways to promote vaccines and combat disinformation.
Sen. Richard Pan, a pediatrician who has previously sponsored vaccine legislation; Sen. Josh Newman; and Assemblymembers Dr. Akilah Weber, Buffy Wicks, Cecilia Aguiar-Curry, and Evan Low are among the committee’s members.
Wiener and Pan, along with San Francisco’s public health director, Dr. Grant Colfax, and numerous schoolchildren, planned a news conference regarding SB866 on Friday.
Wiener gave examples of children who would desire to get vaccinated but are now unable to participate in sports, band, or other activities because their parents refuse or are unable to do so.
In California, he added, kids aged 12 and up can agree to abortions, though lawmakers there passed a law in 1987 that would have forced minors to acquire their parents’ approval unless there was a medical emergency or a judge’s permission. The Texas Supreme Court, however, reversed that law.
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