COVID-19 Vaccines Are Some Divorced Parents’ Newest Divide

I would not vaccinate kids unless there is a comorbidity. I would talk to a pediatrician. Every one of my grand kids had covid. Mild cold symptoms for one day.

I can understand how that happens...

PO1 William "Chip" Nagel
..."accine custody cases are on the rise
Heather and Norm are among hundreds of divorced Pennsylvania parents bringing similar cases to court. Hillary Moonay, a family law attorney at Obermeyer Law in Bucks County who represents families in custody cases, said her firm has seen a surge in custody cases dealing with all sorts of COVID disputes.

Early in the pandemic, it was about whether parents were taking appropriate masking precautions or with whom a child should stay if a parent was exposed, she said. But once the vaccines were approved for minors, things really took off.

“I’ve been doing this for 25 years, and in that time frame, I’ve probably seen two to three cases related to disputes over children getting vaccines,” said Moonay.

Now, she estimates that her family law firm, which has roughly 20 attorneys and offices in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, and Delaware, sees at least one case like this per week.

The scope of judges’ decisions in these cases can vary widely, said Moonay. A narrow ruling would grant one parent decision-making power solely on the issue of COVID vaccines. But if a judge felt one parent’s position skewed so far outside the best interest of the child, the judge could determine that parent should not have any decision-making power going forward. Moonay said she has seen both outcomes, but that one thing is certain: These disputes feel more high-stakes and more intense than other cases.

“Parents have much stronger feelings about it than they do over a lot of other custody issues,” she said.

In her experience, Moonay said, judges tend to lean heavily on the medical advice of pediatricians and look at the children’s vaccination history in making their decisions. If none of that contradicts the notion that the child should take the vaccine, the judge is likely to recommend it. And, she said, judges are on the lookout for signs that one parent’s position may be politically motivated.

“In some cases, we have the evidence to show that because parents have posted things on social media or have spoken out at school board meetings to show that maybe their position is more than what it looks like in court,” she said.

In Heather’s case, the children’s pediatrician did not provide a letter recommending that the kids get vaccinated. The Kimberton Clinic, which describes itself as practicing holistic medicine, offered a note that neither child had any health reasons not to receive the COVID vaccine, but that it would not recommend it outright. Instead, the clinic simply stated that it hewed to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidance, which recommends that healthy children be vaccinated.

That made Heather’s case a bit harder. Her lawyer argued that the kids had had their other vaccinations and were missing out on school and other social activities because they weren’t vaccinated against COVID-19.

Norm represented himself in court. He said he couldn’t afford a lawyer. He attempted to admit a range of evidence backing his case, but the judge refused some of it.

“That was something that definitely didn’t go the way that I thought it was going to go,” Norm said.

He had brought along pieces penned by vaccine-skeptical doctors, such as Marty Makary, arguing that COVID vaccines for kids had more risks than benefits. In the end, the judge admitted data Norm brought from the VAERS database maintained by the CDC, to which anyone can anonymously submit adverse vaccine side effects. He was also able to submit several Johns Hopkins studies looking into the effect of the vaccines on the menstrual cycles of women and girls.

Norm also noted that being pro-vaccine was a new position for Heather. In the past, she had been the one worried about vaccines, and had placed the kids on a delayed vaccine schedule when they were little because she was worried about potential long-term consequences. After their separation, Norm had them vaccinated right away.

Now, they’ve switched positions. Norm said he’s changed his mind because the COVID-19 vaccine doesn’t have a proven track record like the other vaccines recommended for school-age children do. Heather said her calculus shifted due to the urgency of the pandemic — plus, she has a decade of motherhood under her belt.

In her closing remarks, the judge said it was clear both parents cared very much about their children’s well-being, they just had different ideas of how to achieve it. She said she didn’t take these cases lightly.

The parents waited days for the judge to issue a decision. Heather said she was a nervous wreck, genuinely unsure which way the chips would fall."...