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Gov. Josh Shapiro<\/a>\u2019s administration will rescind a series of proposed vaccination and disease-tracking regulations that reignited public outrage toward restrictive pandemic-era policies in Pennsylvania \u2014 a decision made after receiving more than 10,000 comments opposing the changes, the Pennsylvania Department of Health said Friday.<\/p>\n The department will withdraw the regulations<\/a>, incorporate feedback, and resubmit the public health rules \u201conce Pennsylvanians\u2019 feedback has been adequately incorporated,\u201d Neil Ruhland, a spokesperson for the department, said in a statement.<\/p>\n Shapiro\u2019s administration earlier this year submitted the proposed regulations aimed at combating infectious diseases to the Independent Regulatory Review Commission, a little-known board that assesses and approves new state regulations, requiring public input before they can be implemented. These regulations had been in progress for years, but were not introduced to the public until June 4. <\/p>\n The public comment period coincided with a high-profile clash<\/a> between Shapiro and U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. over two infant deaths that Pennsylvania attributed to measles \u2014 the first deaths from the highly contagious and preventable disease in the state in 35 years. And it quickly refueled public disapproval of government mandates enacted during the COVID-19 pandemic. <\/p>\n \u00bb READ MORE: Josh Shapiro\u2019s measles response \u2014 and its backlash \u2014 reignites COVID-19 fury<\/a><\/p>\n The 502-page proposed regulations would have expanded the state health department\u2019s investigatory powers deemed necessary to track, prevent, contain, or mitigate a contagious disease. Republican state lawmakers and thousands of enraged constituents were especially concerned by a provision that would allow the state health department or local health authorities to enter schools or private properties to investigate alleged outbreaks or review vaccination records. They also criticized the health department\u2019s effort to change references to a \u201cpregnant woman\u201d to a \u201cpregnant individual\u201d throughout the policy, claiming it was an effort to remove women from the state\u2019s public health rules.<\/p>\n The pushback comes at a time when federal health officials, under Kennedy<\/a>, who has a history of anti-vaccine activism, have worked to reduce the number of childhood vaccination recommendations \u2014 and as childhood vaccination rates<\/a> hit new lows in Pennsylvania. The effort has prompted Shapiro and other Democratic governors to sign executive orders<\/a> to protect vaccine access. Setting vaccination mandates for schoolchildren falls to the states, not the federal government.<\/p>\n The proposals rescinded Friday will not affect federal or state executive orders related to vaccination access.<\/p>\n House Minority Leader Jesse Topper (R., Bedford) was among the first officials last month to raise alarm about the proposed regulations. In a statement Friday, he said it was the \u201ccorrect and logical conclusion\u201d for the health department, following the outpouring of public opposition.<\/p>\n Senate Majority Leader Joe Pittman (R., Indiana) called Friday\u2019s announcement \u201ca tremendous victory for the grassroots efforts of Pennsylvanians.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201dThis is a stark reminder that we must continue to be vigilant when the Executive Branch attempts overreach,” Pittman said in a statement. \u201cWe cannot and will not allow actions like we saw taken by the Executive Branch during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic to be put in place again.\u201d<\/p>\n Nearly all of the members of the Republican caucuses in Pennsylvania\u2019s Senate and House submitted letters in opposition to the proposed regulations, arguing they were more restrictive than the ones enacted during the COVID-19 public health emergency and would infringe on Pennsylvanians\u2019 constitutional rights. <\/p>\n \u201cThe proposed regulations represent executive-branch overreach reminiscent of what we experienced during the COVID-19 pandemic \u2014 but this time, the rules would be permanent,\u201d Senate President Pro Tempore Kim Ward (R., Westmoreland) said in a statement earlier this week. \u201cEvery Pennsylvanian should understand these regulations and how they could impact their lives.\u201d<\/p>\n At least one Democrat \u2014 State Rep. Dan Frankel (D., Allegheny), who chairs the House Health Committee \u2014 submitted his support during the public comment period for updating the state\u2019s existing communicable disease rules. Even so, his remarks recommended several changes to the proposed regulations, including to how the state would evaluate some vaccination exemptions to consider how children will be affected if their parent forgoes the preventive measures.<\/p>\n Senate Minority Leader Jay Costa (D., Allegheny) said in a statement Friday he was looking forward to continuing the conversation about the regulations, adding that \u201cpublic trust and buy-in is crucial to effective governance.\u201d<\/p>\n