BOISE, Idaho — Idaho Governor Brad Little issued a letter to the Idaho Senate on Saturday morning to inform the body that he vetoed Senate Bill S1023a—the Idaho Medical Freedom Act.
Little excused his disapproval of the legislation by claiming it would prevent schools from sending ill children home and highlighted his support of several other pieces of legislation relating to medical freedom, including the Medical Ethics Defense Act (H59) and the prohibition on mask mandates (H32).
“Parents already have enough to worry about while raising their children,” stated the governor’s letter. “They do not need government imposing more limitations on keeping children safe and healthy from contagious illnesses at school.”
According to the statement of purpose, the Medical Freedom Act would amend current law to extend protection against all mandated medical procedures, not just Coronavirus mandates.
“While I appreciate the support from Governor Little on the many pieces of legislation mentioned in his veto notice, I believe SB1023 “Medial Freedom Act” is vital to secure every Idahoans bodily autonomy,” Sen. Josh Keyser (R–Meridian) told Kootenai Journal. “I will be voting ‘Yes’ to override.”
The legislation passed the Senate on Feb. 26 with a 19-14-2 vote, and the House passed it with a 47-23-0 vote on March 19. Since the bill originated in the Senate, it will be returned to that body where 24 votes are required to override the governor’s veto. If it passes, the House will then hold a vote, which will require 46 votes to override the veto.
The bill’s sponsor Sen. Dan Forman (R–Moscow) did not respond to a request for comment before the publication deadline.
