SR 813: Department of Public Health; to conduct a study on the relationship between sudden unexpected deaths of infants and children and the administration of vaccinations; urge

This resolution does not change any law. Instead, it urges (asks, without legal force) the Department of Public Health to conduct a study examining the relationship between sudden unexpected deaths of infants and children ages two and under and the vaccines they received. The resolution asks the department to analyze the state's immunization records, using anonymous data from the GRITS Immunization Information System (Georgia's statewide immunization database), covering deaths from 2013 to the present. The requested report would include each child's age at death, full immunization history, and how close their last vaccination was to their death. The department would be asked to collaborate with other state and federal agencies and medical experts, and to submit a written report to the Senate by February 1, 2027. The resolution also says the department may decline to do the study unless the General Assembly provides funding for it.

• Urges the Department of Public Health to study any relationship between sudden unexpected infant and child deaths (ages two and under) and vaccinations.
• Asks the department to analyze anonymous immunization records in the GRITS Immunization Information System for children who died suddenly and unexpectedly.
• Requests that the data cover immunization records from 2013 to the present.
• Calls for the final report to list each child's age at death, full vaccination history, and the timing of their last vaccine relative to death.
• Directs the department to work with other state and federal agencies and health experts and submit a written report to the Senate by February 1, 2027.
• States the department may decline to do the study unless the General Assembly appropriates (sets aside state funding for) enough money to pay for it.

The Department of Public Health, which would be asked to conduct and fund the study; families of infants and young children who died suddenly and unexpectedly; and state and federal health agencies and medical experts the department would be asked to consult during the research.

If the Department of Public Health carries out the study, it could produce Georgia-specific data on infant deaths and immunization timing that currently does not exist in this form, potentially informing public health policy. Because the resolution only urges action and ties the study to future funding, no study is guaranteed to happen.

• The resolution urges, rather than requires, the Department of Public Health to conduct the study, so it carries no binding legal mandate.
• The study's data source is specified as the GRITS Immunization Information System, Georgia's immunization records database.
• The report must cover immunization records from calendar year 2013 to the present and must be submitted to the Senate by February 1, 2027.
• The report must include each affected child's age at death, complete immunization history, and the proximity of their last immunization to their death.
• The department is directed to collaborate with relevant state and federal agencies and medical and public health experts to ensure scientific rigor.
• The department may decline to conduct the study unless the General Assembly appropriates sufficient funding to cover its cost.

1. 2026-02-19Senate Read and Referred (Senate)
2. 2026-02-18Senate Hopper (Senate)

• Ricky Williams (R, SD-025)Primary sponsor
• Carden Summers (R, SD-013)
• Bo Hatchett (R, SD-050)
• John Albers (R, SD-056)
• Lee Anderson (R, SD-024)
• Brian Strickland (R, SD-042)

• infant mortality
• vaccine safety study
• public health
• immunization records