Amish Parents Filed Supreme Court Vaccine Petition
A group of Amish parents has petitioned the Supreme Court to challenge New York’s strict school vaccine mandate.
Updated on Sept. 30, 2026 in Children’s Health
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Amish parents filed a petition with the U.S. Supreme Court on Sept. 29 seeking a rehearing of Miller vs. McDonald. The legal challenge targets New York’s 2019 decision to rescind religious exemptions for school vaccination requirements.
Why it matters
The petitioners argue that the state’s current vaccine mandates violate their sincerely held religious beliefs. The case relies on legal arguments established by the 2025 Supreme Court ruling in Mahmoud v. Taylor.
The CDC reported the national MMR and polio vaccination rate for kindergarten-age children was 92.4% as of August. This follows a 0.1% decline in overall U.S. kindergarten vaccination coverage for the 2025-2026 school year.
The players
Supreme Court of the United States
This is the highest federal court in the United States and has the final authority to interpret the Constitution.
Samuel Alito
He is an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States who dissented from the Sept. 8 appeal rejection.
Neil Gorsuch
He is an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States who dissented from the Sept. 8 appeal rejection.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
This is the national public health agency of the United States that tracks vaccination rates and disease control.
The details
New York law currently mandates that children in both public and private schools must comply with vaccine requirements, permitting exemptions only for health-related reasons. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit previously ruled in favor of the state's authority to enforce these requirements on Amish schoolchildren.
Timeline
New York rescinded religious exemptions for school vaccinations in 2019.
The Supreme Court issued a ruling on Mahmoud v. Taylor in 2025.
The CDC reported a 92.4% national kindergarten vaccination rate in August 2026.
The Supreme Court rejected an Eastchester mother's emergency vaccine appeal on Sept. 8, 2026.
Amish parents filed their petition with the Supreme Court on Sept. 29, 2026.
The Big Picture
The petition relies on legal standards established by the 2025 U.S. Supreme Court ruling in Mahmoud v. Taylor. This case extends the arguments regarding religious exercise and state mandates recently addressed by the high court.
The legal outcome will determine whether religious exemptions for school vaccinations are reinstated in New York. This impacts the ability of families with sincerely held religious beliefs to opt out of state-mandated immunization requirements for school enrollment.
The takeaway
The tension between state public health mandates and religious exemptions remains a highly active area of constitutional litigation. Families affected by these policies should monitor potential court interventions that may alter school enrollment requirements.
What happens next
The Supreme Court will decide whether to accept the petition to rehear Miller vs. McDonald.
Further reading
For more information on national vaccination trends, visit the Children’s Health section.
Source note: This article includes information reported by The Journal News.
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