Update 5:12 p.m.: Assembly Member Jesse Bjorkman has provided an amendment that will be part of this resolution during Tuesday’s meeting, in which the language specifically says: “A resolution supporting Kenai Peninsula Borough Residents to receive a COVID-19 vaccination on prioritized and optional basis.”
Borough Mayor Charlie Pierce, along with two members of the Kenai Peninsula Borough Assembly, are seeking to pass a resolution that encourages residents of the Kenai to receive COVID-19 vaccinations on a prioritized and optional basis. Resolution 2020-078 specifically notes that vaccinations should not be discouraged, but that they should only be a matter of personal choice, rather than being forced by a government body.
Assembly Members Jesse Bjorkman and newly-elected Bill Elam co-sponsored the resolution, which will go before the Borough Assembly during their Tuesday, November 10 meeting.
Residents of the Kenai have expressed concern on talk radio and social media that vaccinations will be forced, and Bjorkman aims to eliminate that chatter: “Mandating a vaccine would be just a bad thing for public policy and a bad thing for public health. We’re appreciative, certainly, that Governor Dunleavy has said that vaccines will not be mandated, along with many other state officials around the country. Through its whereas clause, it kind of lays out the dangers of requiring a vaccine. We should be encouraging people to take the vaccine, if that’s something that they want to do, but not requiring.”
Bjorkman wants the assembly to declare that any vaccine will be encouraged, but optional: “I’m hoping to gain support, more support for the resolution so that Kenai Peninsula Borough residents can be confident that they can have a vaccine available to them, but that it’s optional. I think that it’s a very important part of the process, as people go-forward to make their own choices about their own health care.”
While it is unlikely, and unprecedented, that any governmental entity would literally force a person to accept a vaccination, it is possible that a COVID vaccination could ultimately be among the inoculations required for entry to schools. Every state in the nation requires that parents vaccinate children against a variety of diseases, including polio and measles, as a prerequisite to enrolling. Despite that requirement, 48 out of 50 states have exempted those whose religious beliefs forbid vaccination. Eighteen states also have made the decision to exempt individuals who claim to possess non-religious cultural or philosophical objections to vaccines.
The assembly’s proposed resolution aims to actually encourage residents to become vaccinated. In a memo to be presented to the Borough Assembly, the sponsors note that they value the importance of a COVID-19 vaccination, but that any attempts at a coerced vaccination would be met with resistance that would lead fewer people to accept the vaccination. As the memo states: “As more and more people are successfully vaccinated and COVID-19 cases diminish, people who were initially opposed to taking the vaccines are much likely to get vaccinated.”
Borough Assembly meetings are currently closed to the public, but virtual participation is encouraged. The meeting will be held via the Zoom online platform, via computer and telephone. To join from a computer, click here. To join via telephone, call (877) 853-5247. The Meeting ID is 128 871 931.
