TBA Law Blog


Posted by: Stacey Shrader Joslin on Jun 17, 2021

Republican members of the House Government Operations Committee yesterday grilled Health Commissioner Lisa Piercey, accusing her department of targeting minors for mass vaccinations without parental consent. The main point of contention centered on how the state is using the “Mature Minor Doctrine,” which holds that youth age 14 to 18 have the ability to make their own health care decisions. Piercey assured the members that, “Under no circumstance is the department encouraging children to seek out vaccination without parental consent.” The committee ultimately ordered Piercey to soften the state’s efforts to vaccinate children, mainly by bringing parents into the fold, and report back in July, Tennessee Lookout reports.