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California will require students attending school in person to be vaccinated against Covid-19 after the Food and Drug Administration grants full approval for their age group, Governor Gavin Newsom said on Friday.
Newsom’s latest order, the first of its kind nationwide, will take place in two phases for students learning in person. The mandate will first come into effect for students aged 12 and over after the FDA grants full approval to that entire age group.
Pfizer’s Covid vaccine is currently only authorized in emergencies for children aged 12 to 15. The FDA approved the vaccine for children between the ages of 16 and 17 in August.
Newsom said California will apply the warrant to students aged 12 and older as of Jan. 1, but possibly until July 1, depending on when FDA clearance takes place.
Anti-vaccine protesters stage a demonstration outside the San Diego Unified School District office to protest a forced vaccination mandate for students on September 28, 2021 in San Diego, California.
Sandy Huffaker | Getty Images
California will then apply the vaccination mandate for students under 12 in a second phase after full FDA clearance for that age group. Pfizer submitted the initial test data to the FDA on children aged 5 to 11 last month and said it would seek emergency use authorization in the coming weeks.
The FDA has scheduled a meeting on October 26 to consider Pfizer’s request to administer vaccines to this age group, allowing Covid vaccines to begin to be administered to children aged 5 to 11 by Halloween or soon. after.
“Currently in the state of California we have administered at least one dose to 63.5% of all of our 12 to 17 year olds,” Newsom said at a press conference. “But we need to do more – 84% of all eligible have received a dose, but for 12 to 17, we’re not where we need to be.”
California reported more than 6 million public school students in April, according to its Department of Education.
Newsom issued a weekly test warrant for all unvaccinated school staff on August 11. The governor added that he was awaiting further guidance from the Biden administration before issuing a vaccine mandate for all school staff to match the upcoming deployment for students.
Similar testing warrants for California employees and healthcare workers who refuse to be vaccinated also came into effect in early August.
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