Guest Column: Click Unleashes Bill to Protect Private Medical Information

"Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety."

This oft-quoted wisdom of Benjamin Franklin represented the heartbeat of the American Revolution. This doctrine flows in our blood and is woven into the fabric of our DNA. It is also the context of the Individual Privacy and Anti-Discrimination Act, which I introduced today with my colleague, Representative Diane Grendell. 

The Franklin quote stands in stark contrast to the mantra of a lady that vehemently scolded me, “We are just going to have to give up some of our rights to keep everyone safe!” 

“Not on my watch,” I softly and kindly replied with a firm resolve.                     

COVID-19 has split the nation not necessarily along party lines but more accurately according to worldviews. In fact, I can’t help but to find the irony in all of the Democrats who want to mandate what is essentially the Trump vaccine! Herein lies the contrast. Conservatives create the opportunity while leftists cry out for obedience and compliance. It is the difference between empowerment and control. 

Debates over the efficacy of the available vaccines have stolen the spotlight from the core issue at hand. As the saying goes, “You can’t see the forest for the trees.” I grow weary of arguments about magnetism, 5G towers and other conspiracy theories. They serve as nothing more than a distraction from the truly relevant discussions that surround the vaccines.

I’m not afraid of any of the vaccines, though I do understand that there have been complications for some people. I have advocated for people to educate themselves and strongly consider the vaccine if they and their physician believe that it is appropriate for them. I’m thrilled to know that people have options, but what I am afraid of is when people lose their options. 

There are inherent risks with vaccines as with most medical interventions. Some people are at higher risk than others. Medical history is a critical factor. Healthcare professionals have reported vaccine injuries. Physicians have advised some patients that the vaccines are inappropriate for them based on their personal health profile. Many people have natural immunity which is far superior to any immunity available from a vaccine. In other words, one size does not fit all. Vaccine hesitancy among healthcare professionals should be enough to cause people to at least do some research.

Instead, there is a movement to mandate. Don’t research. Don’t consult your physician. Don’t consider mitigating factors. Just trust your university, employer, travel agent or worse yet, the government to make your medical choices. They want to bribe you, coax you, and coerce you to follow their prescription, even though they are completely unqualified to write a prescription or give medical advice. This is outside of their scope and practice but you are expected to comply without question. 

This climate of fear is not based in science nor rooted in the founding principles of our republic. It is dangerous to our democracy and disastrous to the decency of the American spirit. Why should people be treated as second-class citizens simply based on their personal medical history? This is wrong. We cannot allow activists to politicize an individual’s personal medical choices. 

I have been informed of multiple institutions that require orange stickers on name badges to declare to the public your vaccination status! Not only do they demand to know your medical history, but they demand that you reveal it to everyone else. Invasive hardly seems to cover this personal violation.

Consider the fact that in this climate people are assumed to be carriers simply because they have not been vaccinated. Over 1.2 million people in Ohio have been infected with COVID-19 and carry natural antibodies. Yet they can be denied an education, an income, or even access to public goods and services because they have not been vaccinated. Wrong again. This is morally wrong.

Yes, I’ve heard the counterarguments. “It’s our duty to protect others from contracting the virus. We have to prevent the spread.” 

Who are you protecting, the vaccinated? I thought that was why they got vaccinated. 

Are you protecting the unvaccinated? Didn’t they make a conscious choice? 

You are protecting those who cannot get vaccinate - really? Those are the ones you are discriminating against. They are the ones being banned, ostracized, and told that they cannot participate. 

It’s time that we wake up to some good old-fashioned common sense. Vaccination is a private and personal medical choice that should be made in consultation with your personal physician. It is absolutely the right choice for many people but not for all people. No one should be ostracized, objectified, discriminated against, or impugned in any way regardless of the choice they make. 

The Individual Privacy and Anti-Discrimination Act goes to the root of the issue. Each individual is entitled to privacy when it comes to their personal, medical choices. There is no clear and convincing evidence that protecting their privacy is a threat to their neighbors. Protecting the privacy of everyone’s medical choices effectively dissipates further discussions on mandates, branding and other inappropriate actions based on an individual’s vaccine status. 

What we do on this issue is pivotal and critical. If we surrender privacy and medical autonomy on this issue, we can certainly expect greater invasions of privacy and loss of bodily autonomy in the future. If we stop it here, we draw a line in the sand securing those inalienable rights endowed to us by our Creator. The line we draw today will affect the lives our children will live tomorrow - we can’t afford to fail. That’s why I am introducing the Individual Privacy and Anti-Discrimination Act.

-State Representative Gary Click, 88th Ohio House District