In Miller v. McDonald, (2d Cir., March 3, 2025), the U.S. 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals held that New York state's removal of a religious belief exemption from its school immunization law did not violate the 1st Amendment free exercise rights of Amish parents or Amish schools. The court held that the public health law is neutral on its face and its legislative history does not reveal an anti-religious bias. It also rejected plaintiffs' contention that the law is not generally applicable, saying in part:
Plaintiffs contend that exempting students for medical reasons treats comparable secular conduct more favorably than religious beliefs.....
Repealing the religious exemption decreases “to the greatest extent medically possible” the number of unvaccinated students and thus the risk of disease; maintaining the medical exemption allows “the small proportion of students” who medically “cannot be vaccinated” to avoid the health consequences that “taking a particular vaccine would inflict.” ... Exempting religious objectors, however, detracts from that interest. Religious exemptions increase “the risk of transmission of vaccine-preventable diseases among vaccinated and unvaccinated students alike.”...
In sum, Plaintiffs have failed to allege that § 2164 is anything but neutral and generally applicable. The district court therefore did not err in applying rational basis review. As noted, Plaintiffs have conceded that the law satisfies rational basis review....
[Plaintiffs] claim that the school immunization law mandates two impossible options: inject their children with vaccines, forcing conduct against their religious beliefs, or forego educating their children in a group setting, requiring them to sacrifice a central religious practice. True, Plaintiffs have shown that § 2164 burdens their religious beliefs and practices; but those burdens are not equivalent to the existential threat the Amish faced in Yoder. Unlike in Yoder, compliance with § 2164 would not forcibly remove Amish children from their community at the expense of the Amish faith or the Amish way of life.
Moreover, Yoder’s holding is limited by the state’s interest in protecting public health....
