Governor Reeves says Mississippi will not add COVID vaccine to school schedule

Within the 2022 legislative session, lawmakers handed a brand new legislation that prohibits state, native governments from mandating the vaccine.

Final week, the Facilities for Illness Management and Prevention (CDC) Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices voted unanimously so as to add the COVID-19 vaccination to the advice schedule for college youngsters.

The advice will now go on to the CDC the place it’s anticipated that officers there’ll log off on it.

At the moment, the childhood vaccine suggestions counsel the vaccine for kids 6 months and up. This contains boosters when they’re eligible to obtain them.

CDC vaccine suggestions are merely suggestions. It’s left as much as every particular person state and native jurisdiction as to what vaccinations are required to ensure that a toddler to attend public college.

Previous to this suggestion, throughout the 2022 Legislative session, Mississippi lawmakers handed a legislation, HB 1509, that may prohibit state and native governments from mandating the vaccine. In line with State Senator Angela Hill, this may additionally apply to high school youngsters.

“I mentioned this challenge with Lt. Governor Hosemann’s workers when HB 1509 came to visit from the Home. The legislature agreed on the language that the COVID shot can’t be required for college attendance or another comparable scenario within the convention report for HB 1509,” stated Hill on the laws. “It additionally ensures a spiritual exemption from the COVID shot for workers each private and non-private. It’s not a real vaccine anyway. It doesn’t forestall transmission.”

Mississippi lawmakers vote to ban state, native governments from imposing COVID vaccine mandate

Mississippi Governor Tate Reeves additionally affirmed on Twitter that below his management, the state won’t be adhering to this suggestion.

“The CDC is stubbornly making a horrible mistake, which might require mother and father in many faculties to provide their youngsters the brand new COVID vaccines,” Reeves tweeted Tuesday. “That won’t occur in Mississippi on my watch. It’s not corresponding to decades-old, confirmed vaccines towards deadlier illnesses.”

States can select whether or not or to not add the COVID-19 vaccine to the required vaccines for college youngsters however will not be mandated to take action. In line with the CDC, not all states observe the suggestions to the letter.

For instance, the HPV vaccine was beneficial for the schedule in 2006, however only some states and territories adopted that suggestion.

At the moment, Mississippi requires college age youngsters to obtain DTaP (Diphtheria, Tetanus, Pertussis) MMR (Measles, Mumps, Rubella), Polio, Varicella, and Hep B vaccines however doesn’t require HPV, Hep A, or Meningitis.

The state permits for medical exemptions however not exemptions primarily based on non secular of philosophical beliefs, in accordance with the CDC.

Required vaccinations to attend public college first started in 1855 in Massachusetts. This was the primary state to require that youngsters have a smallpox vaccine earlier than going to high school to forestall the unfold of smallpox. Within the 1970’s, a vaccination initiative started in an effort to enhance the variety of vaccinated youngsters to 90%. By 1998-1999, all however 4 U.S. states had vaccine mandates in place for college students getting into public kindergarten by way of twelfth grade, in accordance with the Mayo Clinic.