Photo credit: www.yahoo.com
WASHINGTON (AP) — A recent directive signed by President Donald Trump aims to potentially penalize educational institutions and states that impose COVID-19 vaccination requirements for students by threatening their access to federal funding.
However, the overall influence of this order is expected to be minimal, as many schools and colleges across the country have already lifted their vaccination mandates, and several states have enacted laws explicitly prohibiting such requirements.
The announced order mandates the Education Department and the Department of Health and Human Services to outline a strategy for abolishing COVID-19 vaccine mandates. However, the specific federal funds that could be utilized as leverage in this context remain unspecified, as most education-related funding originates from congressional directives.
Trusted news and daily delights, right in your inbox
See for yourself — The Yodel is the go-to source for daily news, entertainment and feel-good stories.
This executive order appears to be an affirmation of Trump’s campaign commitment, which explicitly rejected federal funding for schools implementing vaccination requirements.
This directive focuses solely on COVID-19 vaccines, with existing laws in all states mandating vaccinations for various other diseases, including measles, mumps, polio, and others.
Children seeking exemptions to these vaccination laws can do so for medical reasons, and many states also allow for nonmedical exemptions, including those based on religious beliefs.
Though many colleges initially required students to receive COVID-19 vaccinations, these requirements have largely been rescinded. A select few institutions, such as Swarthmore and Oberlin, continue to require vaccinations, particularly for on-campus residents, but they permit both medical and religious exemptions.
State-level mandates for student vaccinations against COVID-19 have been infrequent. California had intended to include the COVID-19 vaccine in its list of mandated vaccinations for K-12 students, but this move was ultimately abandoned. Similarly, Illinois had imposed a vaccine requirement for college students, which was lifted after one year.
___
The Associated Press’ education reporting is funded by various private foundations. The AP holds full responsibility for its content. To learn more, visit AP’s standards for partnerships with philanthropy, along with a list of supporters and details about funded coverage at AP.org.
Source
www.yahoo.com