With speeches dominating the first week of the legislative session, The Iowa Standard’s award for Legislator of the Week had to be awarded based on a bill that stood out among the hundreds filed during the opening week.
There were plenty of options to pick from, but one certainly deserved the spotlight.
Republican State Representatives Dean Fisher and Steve Bradley introduced House File 35. So, what does the bill do?
Well, this bill requires a postsecondary school that offers a degree program that requires a clinical rotation to identify a clinical rotation placement where a student will be exempt from any COVID-19 vaccine requirement imposed by the placement location upon a student’s request.
If the college or university fails to comply, it will not qualify as an eligible institution for the purpose of the Iowa Tuition Grant program.
This bill isn’t necessarily as far as we’d like to see defending Iowans from COVID-19 vaccine coercion go, but it is a good step.
A number of organizations have registered on the bill, but just two have decided to take a position.
The Iowa Atheists and Freethinkers are against the proposal.
VALOR Iowa is registered in support.