FDA approves first COVID-19 vaccine. Let the mandates start: U.S. military and Disney World.
After the Food and Drug Administration approved the Pfizer BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine, there was a tsunami of mandates in the United States. This will force millions of Americans to get vaccinated.
Following Monday's action, the U.S. military, New York City teachers and staff, all New Jersey teachers, state employees, students at multiple universities, employees at CVS Health and corporate workers and pharmacists are now covered by vaccine requirements.
This adds up to millions of Americans who could be affected by COVID-19 vaccine delaying. They could lose their jobs or be barred from school if they are not tested every week.
"Full approval is a much larger deal than people think," Dr. Robert Murphy, executive Director of the Institute for Global Health at Feinberg Schools of Medicine at Northwestern University said.
Although the U.S. vaccination rate has increased over the last few weeks, it is still less than 25% of what it was in April when almost 2 million Americans were getting their shots every day.
According to surveys, 30% of Americans don't want to be vaccinated. As of Tuesday, 73% of Americans aged 18 or older had received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. 62.6% had been fully vaccinated.
Murphy stated that mandates are the only thing that will work. Since the federal government is limited in its impact, it will be individuals and hospitals who make those decisions.
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Legally, there has been no change for businesses despite the emergency use authorization granted to Pfizer-BioNTech's vaccine.
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Nicholas Diamond, Global Health Group leader for C&M International, stated that "but it does provide an extra level of comfort."
Before the full approval was granted, there had been legal protection. The Department of Justice stated that employers could require COVID-19 vaccines under an emergency authorization in July.
This didn't stop state legislative discussions and legal challenges, but FDA's official license renders those arguments moot.
Diamond stated, "Now that the change is made, I expect there will be new requirements over the next few days."
The biggest was made hours after the FDA announcement by the U.S. Military that it required vaccination against COVID-19 in all service personnel.
Pentagon Press Secretary John Kirby stated that "We are preparing the guidance for the force right now."
All 1.3 million U.S. military personnel will be affected by the mandate. The 17 vaccines administered by the Defense Department depend on the service member's occupation, their location, and mission requirements.
Jeff Zients (White House COVID-19 Response Coordinator), stated Tuesday that "we have to examine every lever the federal government has." "We expect more vaccinations."
Schools, universities, and staff
The approval is used by universities to initiate mandates.
Monday's action by the University of Minnesota saw the addition of COVID-19 to its list of vaccines for its 67,000 students. It also required all 23,000 employees and faculty members at its five campuses to be vaccinated.
Ohio State University has 68,000 students and 45,000 staff. They announced Tuesday that everyone must receive at least one dose of vaccination by October 15.
William F. Tate IV, president of Louisiana State University, said that the university would communicate with students by Tuesday about the mandate. Nearly 35,000 students attend the Baton Rouge campus.
The University of Louisiana announced that COVID-19 vaccination will be compulsory for the spring semester. Monday's announcement by the Louisiana state government stated that all 70,000 Louisiana state workers not vaccinated would be subject to mandatory testing, and other requirements.
According to the Chronicle of Higher Education, approximately 750 colleges have had to receive COVID-19 vaccinations so far. Most colleges that require vaccines for in-person classes are located in blue states. However, most universities strongly encourage or plead with students to get vaccinated.
American Medical Association, the largest national medical association, called for mandates to be adopted by the private and public sectors. They claim incentives have not brought the country to where it should be.
The AMA has a strong policy regarding vaccine mandates. This tool has been used around the globe for decades to eradicate polio, measles and other vaccine-preventable diseases. In a statement, Dr. Gerald Harmon, AMA president, said that similar mandates are needed to end the COVID-19 epidemic.
Because it cannot be done nationally, the effort must be made locally. According to Murphy, Northwestern's Murphy, there are no federal mandates because the U.S. Constitution does not contain such provisions.
He said that there is nothing in our Constitution about public health because it wasn't possible to have public health at the time it was written.
Reach Elizabeth Weise at eweise@usatoday.com
This article first appeared on USA TODAY. COVID vaccination mandates increase after FDA full approval
