Parents Lose Religious Freedom Challenge to Connecticut School Vaccine Law

September 23, 2026

A Connecticut judge has dismissed a lawsuit brought by parents challenging the state’s elimination of religious exemptions from school vaccine mandates.

Christianity Daily reports that Judge Edward Krumeich of the Connecticut Superior Court granted a motion on Monday to dismiss the lawsuit filed by parents Keira Spillane and Anna Kehle against Gov. Ned Lamont, state education and health officials, the Orange Board of Education and Whitby School.

The parents had argued that vaccinating their children would violate “their closely held religious beliefs” about the sanctity of human life because some vaccines were developed using cell lines derived from aborted fetuses.

Their lawsuit alleged violations of the Connecticut Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA), the Connecticut Constitution and the U.S. Constitution.

State officials sought dismissal based on legislation enacted in 2021 and a law passed this year clarifying that religious exemptions to school vaccine requirements are not protected by the state RFRA.

According to Christianity Daily, The Connecticut Supreme Court rejected the plaintiffs’ state and federal constitutional claims in 2024 but returned the RFRA issue to the Superior Court, which has now ruled that eliminating the exemption does not violate the law.

The ruling concludes four years of litigation over Connecticut’s removal of the exemption.

Connecticut is among a small number of states that do not permit religious exemptions from school vaccine mandates, including California, Maine, Minnesota and New York, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.

Photo: top, Credit: Unsplash/CDC