New York’s Amish community is taking its fight over the state’s school vaccine mandate back to the U.S. Supreme Court — and some families say they may leave the state if they lose.
The dispute stems from New York’s 2019 decision to eliminate religious exemptions from vaccination requirements for schoolchildren. The change came under then-Governor Andrew Cuomo following a major measles outbreak.
According to a report the New York Post published on Wednesday, August 26, Amish parents have been fighting the mandate in court since 2024, arguing that forcing them to vaccinate their children violates their religious beliefs. New York is home to an estimated 25,000 Amish residents.
The state began issuing $2,000 fines to schools that failed to comply in 2022. Three Amish schools involved in the lawsuit — Shady Lane School in Clymer, Pleasant View in Heuvelton and Dygert Road School near Canajoharie — have accumulated a combined $118,000 in fines, according to the report.
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“The Amish really don’t want to be in this position. They don’t want to be engaging in this lawsuit in any way at all. But they’ve been left with no choice,” attorney Aaron Siri, who represents the plaintiffs, said, per the New York Post report.
According to the outlet, earlier this year, the Supreme Court sent the case, Miller v. McDonald, back to the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for another look after that court previously ruled against the Amish. The appeals court again ruled against them, and their attorneys now plan to petition the Supreme Court next month.
If the challenge ultimately fails, attorneys for the Amish confirmed to the outlet that some members of the community could leave New York, possibly relocating to Pennsylvania, which is currently battling a measles outbreak. NBC News reported that two unvaccinated people in Lancaster County, an area known for its large Amish community, died from the disease this week — the first measles-related deaths in the U.S. this year and Pennsylvania’s first in 35 years. As of Tuesday, per the report, the state had confirmed 393 cases, including 70 people who were hospitalized with complications.
A spokesperson for the New York State Department of Health defended the mandate in a statement, via the New York Post, confirming that its responsibility “is to protect public health, keep New Yorkers and their families safe and enforce the law fairly and equitably.”
Attorney Hiram Sasser, who also represents the plaintiffs, questions if the case extends beyond vaccines.
“Have we gotten to a place where we aren’t going to make room for the Amish anymore?” he asked, per the report.
Now, all eyes will be on the Supreme Court to see whether the justices agree to hear the case next term.
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