When the Illinois Immunization Advisory Committee called a rare meeting Thursday, some were concerned a COVID-19 vaccine mandate for school children was a possibility.
According to the Illinois Department of Public Health, 64% of children aged 12 to 17 have received two doses of the vaccine and only 39% of children aged 5 to 11 received both doses.
But vaccinations have waned, with 22% of kids aged 12 to 17 getting a monovalent booster shot, and only 7% of children aged 5 to 11 getting a booster. The numbers are even lower for the second bivalent booster.
During the public forum, a mother of two school children named Lisa said she is a teacher, but would homeschool her kids if there was a vaccine mandate.
Illinois Department of Public Health Director Sameer Vohra said at this time, no mandates are planned.
“I want to assert here and things that the governor has shared as well is that there are no plans to update the vaccine requirement for school-aged children,” said Vohra.
Gov. J.B. Pritzker has said that it would be up to the General Assembly to implement a vaccine mandate for school children.
Illinois law says immunizations shall be required to go to a K-12 school in accordance with rules created by the Illinois Department of Public Health. It is unclear if they plan to follow the CDC’s recommendations made in the fall.
In a recent Pew Research Center poll, 35% of parents now believe parents should be able to decide not to vaccinate their children, up from 23% in 2019.
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