HARTFORD, CT — Hundreds of parents went to the Capitol Wednesday to oppose getting rid of the religious exemption for vaccines for children to attend schools. Medical experts and state officials argued that dropping vaccination rates at schools could threaten public health.

The hearing went beyond four hours as of 3 p.m. The bill would still allow for medically-necessary vaccine exemptions. It also would require the state Department of Public Health to release school-by-school immunization data annually. "An unfounded fear of the safety of vaccines has been driving the increased religious exemption rates," state Department of Public Health Commissioner Renee Coleman-Mitchell said.

Coleman-Mitchell testified in favor of the bill, but suggested language be changed to push its implementation back. As it's written, children would need to be vaccinated by the fall of 2020. "I believe this timeline is too aggressive, I would prefer we give families objecting to the vaccination more time to prepare for the new reality, and would appreciate working with the committee to identify a workable solution," she said.

Gov. Ned Lamont said he is in favor of repealing the religious exemption. " Vaccinations are safe. They are the reason dangerous diseases disappeared for decades," he said in a statement. "It is no coincidence that with the rise of social media spreading a campaign of disinformation over the last several years that has been widely debunked by the medical community, we have seen a steady increase in the number of children whose parents refuse to protect them from preventable diseases."

Several families at the Capitol carried signs that said, "Parents call the shots," and "In pharma we trust?" according to the Hartford Courant.

Hundreds of people submitted testimony supporting or in opposition to the bill.

State Rep. Craig Fishbein (R-Wallingford) submitted testimony in opposition to the bill. "While the child's parent may not be as well versed in the effects of vaccinations, it is that parent's responsibility to attend to the child," he said. "By taking away the parent's freedom of choice, the parent or guardian must deal with the results of a decision that was not their own until the child becomes an adult."