A lobbying firm is spending $476,000 for TV ads defending the law against a repeal vote on the March 3 ballot, prompting opponents of the law to say the funding is an effort by Big Pharma to control Maine’s vaccine policy.

Opponents of the law see the elimination of non-medical exemptions for schoolchildren as government overreach, while supporters argue that children’s health is at stake.

New finance reports for PACs involved in the campaigns over Question 1 show that opponents of the new vaccine law have outraised supporters 5 to 1.

Maine’s secretary of state has certified the voter signatures on a petition that calls for voters to decide on the law ending religious and philosophical exemptions for childhood vaccines.