Tennessee Official Fired Over Parental Consent Debate
There was an interesting layoff in Tennessee for parental consent and direct marketing of vaccines to minors. Whether or not you want the Covid vaccine for yourself, allowing children 12 and older to make health decisions on their own without their parents’ knowledge can be scary. We can play the devil’s advocate. For example, when teenagers become sexually active, it might be considered prohibited (for some) or common sense (for others) to obtain birth control without parental consent, as teenage pregnancy has serious consequences. However, birth control pills and implantable IUDs pose a health risk. The risk of teenage pregnancy can be life-changing for both the boy and the girl. But what about the Covid vaccination? Is the risk-reward equation similar? In particular for a vaccine that is still in the experimental stage and contains incomplete data on the risk to children, including their future fertility and heart status. Both scenarios depend on politics, upbringing, life experience, perhaps religion, and the parents’ personal point of view. What worries me is that I read that Dr. Fiscus was sent a muzzle anonymously by mail. She felt it was a threat to remain silent – and who could blame her? But what if it was sent by someone telling her not to wear a muzzle? Anyway, it’s intimidating and I sympathize with her and her family as she’s probably worried about her safety. Just as many of us are concerned about the safety of our children when they are vaccinated. And we know it from muzzles. What a world.
That shootout took place in Tennessee. You may recall that Nurse Tiffany Pontes-Dover was vaccinated against COVID on camera during a press event at her Chattanooga hospital in December. Sister Dover passed out on camera. Without breaking into coat and dagger territory, her formerly active social media Instagram account has been shut down, and despite thousands of requests for evidence that she survived, questions remain as to whether or not she is still alive. Does anyone have Dr. Fiscus asked if she had any contact with Sister Dover as a former senior vaccination officer in the state?
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NPR: She says she was fired for saying teenagers don’t need parental consent for vaccines
Tennessee’s senior vaccine official says she was fired as punishment for doing her job in the face of political opposition.
Dr. Michelle Fiscus became embroiled in controversy after providing legal advice to health care providers stating that teenagers do not need parental consent to receive a COVID-19 vaccine shot – a position established by decades of state law.
“In particular, it was MY job to provide evidence-based education and access to vaccines so that Tenneseers can protect themselves from COVID-19,” said Fiscus in a damning statement about her release. “I’ve now been fired for doing just that.”
Tennessee leaders have abused the public’s trust, Fiscus said, accusing them of putting their own political gain above the good of the people. She defended her colleagues in the health sector who fought the pandemic – and she was particularly offended that a legislature had described the actions of the Ministry of Health as “reprehensible”.
Fiscus said that “the ‘leaders’ of this state who stuck their heads in the sand and denied the existence of COVID-19 or who thought they knew better than the scientists who spent their lives preventing disease … what is ‘reprehensible’. I am ashamed of them. I am afraid for my condition. “
Due to opposition from lawmakers, Fiscus said, Tennessee is halting all vaccination efforts for teenagers and children – not just against COVID-19, but measles and other diseases as well.
