CA Dept. of Health no longer plans to require COVID vaccine for kids to go to school

The California Department of Public Health announced this week that it will no longer be pursuing an effort to add COVID-19 vaccinations to the list of required inoculations for children to start public school in the state.

As the state prepares to end its COVID state of emergency at the end of the month, a few months ahead of the federal government, state health authorities have reversed an earlier decision to add the COVID-19 vaccine to the list of required shots students must receive before entering public schools in California. “CDPH is not currently exploring emergency rulemaking to add COVID-19 to the list of required school vaccinations,” said the CDPH statement. “But we continue to strongly recommend COVID-19 immunization for students and staff to keep everyone safer in the classroom.”

Last week, the White House announced it will end the national COVID emergency on May 11, allowing the promised 60-day notice before ending the COVID benefits and remaining protocols. Reported cases in the United States have declined by 14 percent in the last two weeks, according to the New York Times, and hospitalizations due to COVID have decreased by 20 percent. 

The California Department of Public Health’s website does not currently list the COVID-19 vaccination as a mandated inoculation for entering public schools in the state.