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DENVER, CO – Legislation to protect Coloradans’ access to immunizations and science-backed decision making, regardless of changes to federal guidance, was signed into law today.
SB26-032, sponsored by Senators Kyle Mullica, D-Thornton, and Lindsey Daugherty, D-Arvada, and Representatives Lisa Feret, D-Arvada, and Kyle Brown, D-Louisville, allows Colorado’s Board of Health to continue using science-backed vaccine guidelines from reputable health professional organizations in addition to federal guidance. It also adds protections to ensure consistent vaccine access and coverage.
“As an ER nurse, I know that protecting Coloradans’ access to immunizations is a matter of life and death,” said Mullica. “Vaccines must continue to be widely available and given according to a schedule based on science and evidence. With this new law, we’re standing up to protect Coloradans’ health and safety and insulate Colorado from the dysfunction in Washington.”
“Vaccines fight disease, save lives and strengthen public health,” said Feret. “We’re taking action in Colorado to protect the health and safety of our community members, and this new law will standardize state-level vaccine guidance and information while expanding access to this critical health care tool.”
“Vaccines are medical miracles,” said Daugherty. “Adults, children, and infants used to die every day from diseases that we have all but eradicated because of immunizations. It is crucial that, regardless of the confusion spreading from RFK Jr. and the White House, Coloradans have access to evidence-based care and the vaccines that keep us and our children healthy.”
“Regardless of the dangerous misinformation and junk science touted by Washington and Secretary Kennedy, this law prioritizes data-driven information to protect the health and safety of Coloradans,” said Brown. “We will not allow the federal government’s misguided vaccine policies to put Coloradans at risk. SB26-032 builds upon our work to safeguard immunization access in Colorado and ensure it’s backed by trusted organizations that follow the science.”
The bill also codifies pharmacists’ authority to prescribe and administer vaccines and temporarily expands existing state liability protections to more qualified health professionals who provide immunizations. Under this new law, the Department of Health Care Policy and Financing (HCPF) will be permitted to purchase certain vaccines for children based on guidance from specified national medical professional organizations.
Colorado has traditionally relied on sound federal vaccine recommendations. However, recent shifts in federal vaccine guidance have created uncertainty and confusion, and more states are turning to trusted professional organizations for guidance. The trusted health organizations named in SB26-032 are the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Academy of Family Physicians, the American College of Physicians, and the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.
The legislation builds upon last year’s HB25-1027, sponsored by Senators Mullica and Jodeh and Representatives Brown and Gilchrist, which directed the state Board of Health to consider the recommendations of professional organizations when creating immunization requirements. SB26-032 does not create new vaccine mandates or change medical and non-medical exemptions under Colorado law.
Colorado recently joined a 15-state lawsuit against the Trump Administration, alleging the recent changes in childhood vaccine recommendations are not scientifically backed, and therefore could pose a community risk. The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention removed seven key childhood vaccine recommendations for children, including COVID-19, hepatitis A, and hepatitis B.