Eliminates use of vaccines containing mercury over three years.

A4868

ASSEMBLY, No. 4868

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

222nd LEGISLATURE

�

INTRODUCED MAY 4, 2026

Sponsored by:

Assemblyman� GREGORY P. MCGUCKIN

District 10 (Monmouth and Ocean)

SYNOPSIS

���� Eliminates use of vaccines containing mercury over
three years.

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

���� As introduced.

��

An Act

concerning vaccines that contain mercury and supplementing Title 26 of the
Revised Statutes.

����
Be It Enacted

by the Senate and General Assembly of
the State of New Jersey:

���� 1.��� a.� Except as otherwise
provided in this section, beginning January 1, 2016, a health care provider
shall not administer to any person in this State an influenza vaccine that
contains more than 0.5 micrograms of mercury per 0.25 milliliter dose to a child
under three years of age or 1.0 microgram of mercury per 0.5 milliliter dose to
a person over three years of age, and any other vaccine that contains more than
a trace amount of mercury.

���� b.��� Except as otherwise
provided in this section, beginning January 1, 2017, a health care provider
shall not administer to any person in this State a vaccine that contains more
than a trace amount of mercury.

���� c.���� Except as otherwise
provided in this section, beginning January 1, 2018, a health care provider
shall not administer to any person in this State a vaccine that contains any
amount of mercury.

���� d.��� The Commissioner of
Health may authorize the use of vaccines containing a higher level of mercury
than that specified in subsections a., b. and c. of this section if he
determines it is necessary to prevent or respond to an outbreak of disease and
there are insufficient amounts of such vaccines to adequately protect the
public health.� Persons who receive a vaccine containing more than a trace
amount of mercury shall be informed in advance that the vaccine contains
mercury.

���� e.���� For purposes of this
section, "trace amount" means a concentration of less than .0002%.

���� 2.��� The Commissioner of
Health shall adopt rules and regulations, pursuant to the "Administrative
Procedure Act," P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), necessary to carry
out the provisions of this act.

���� 3.��� This act shall take
effect immediately.

STATEMENT

���� This bill would phase out the
use of vaccines that contain mercury over a three-year period.� Beginning
January 1, 2016, health care providers would be prohibited from administering
an influenza vaccine that contains more than 0.5 micrograms of mercury per 0.25
milliliter dose for children under three years of age, and 1.0 microgram of
mercury per 0.5 milliliter dose for persons over three years of age, and any
other vaccine that contains more than a trace amount of mercury.� "Trace
amount" means a concentration of less than .0002%.� Beginning January 1,
2017, health care providers would be prohibited from administering vaccines
that contain more than a trace amount of mercury, and beginning January 1,
2018, health care providers would be prohibited from administering vaccines
containing any mercury.

���� The bill provides an exception
under which the Commissioner of Health may authorize the use of vaccines
containing a higher level of mercury if he determines it is necessary to
prevent or respond to an outbreak of disease and there are insufficient amounts
of such vaccines to adequately protect the public health.� Persons who receive
a vaccine containing more than a trace amount of mercury shall be informed in
advance that the vaccine contains mercury.

���� Since the 1930s, thimerosal,
which is approximately 50% ethyl mercury by weight, has been used as a
preservative in vaccines.� The federal Food and Drug Administration has
encouraged drug manufacturers to reduce or eliminate thimerosal from vaccines
in order to reduce the cumulative levels of mercury to which children may be
exposed after receiving recommended childhood immunizations.� According to the
federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), with the exception of
influenza vaccines, the last lots of vaccines manufactured with thimerosal that
are used in the childhood immunization schedule expired in 2003. In 2004, the
CDC added influenza vaccines to the recommended childhood immunization
schedule.� It is expected that the manufacturing capacity of influenza vaccines
with no thimerosal or trace amounts of thimerosal will increase in the next few
years.