Tag Archive for: mandates

Not a Single U.S. State Is Requiring Kids to Get Vaccinated to Attend Public School. Why?

Economics may offer a clue as to why not one state is mandating vaccination to attend school in the 2022-2023 school year, even though many government officials support coercive vaccination policies.


September has arrived and many children are back in public schools (though fewer than previous years).

At a recent event, one parent joked to me we’re now officially in “vaccine season.” The comment made me laugh, but there’s at least a kernel of truth to it. It’s not unusual for states to require that children receive an array of vaccinations—from polio, diphtheria, and chickenpox to measles, mumps, and meningitis—to be enrolled in a public school system.

One vaccine that parents will not find on any state’s required list in 2022 are the Covid-19 shots, which have been a source of great debate in the US and other countries.

While a few US cities continue to push vaccine mandates to attend, Pew Charitable Trusts pointed out earlier this year that states have been surprisingly wary of mandating Covid shots for children.

“[Only] two states—California and Louisiana—have added COVID-19 vaccines to the list of immunizations mandated for schoolchildren,” Michael Ollove pointed out in January. “Both requirements would be enforced next school year, and then only if the vaccines receive full authorization by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.”

Things have changed since then.

In May, Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards announced the Louisiana Department of Health would not require children attending the state’s daycares or K-12 schools to provide proof of vaccination. California, which in October 2021 became the first state to announce Covid vaccine requirements for school, announced in April that it would not require vaccination, noting the vaccines had not at that time been approved by the FDA for all school-age children. (They are now.)

The fact that not a single US state is requiring students to be vaccinated against Covid to attend K-12 school is probably a bit surprising to readers. (It was to this author.)

I’d like to think that policymakers and politicians finally woke up to the fact that vaccine mandates are immoral, inhumane, and a clear violation of bodily integrity. But that seems unlikely considering that many vaccine mandates remain in place, particularly at the federal and municipal levels.

It’s also possible that lawmakers have realized vaccinated individuals can still get sick and spread the virus, and therefore concluded vaccinations are a matter of personal health, not public health. Yet once again this theory is undermined by the presence of other vaccine mandates that remain in place. Some may contend that we’ve simply beaten the virus and mandates are no longer necessary, but official statistics show Covid deaths and cases remain stubbornly high.

So what’s the answer?

What’s most likely is that political considerations are at play. Yet this thesis too, at first blush, appears to be undermined by the reality that polls show Americans support Covid vaccine mandates in schools.

Some basic economics, however, can help us see that the politics are more complicated than that.

Public Choice Theory is a field of economics pioneered by the Nobel Prize-winning economist James M. Buchanan and economist Gordon Tullock. It rests on a simple assumption: politicians and bureaucrats make decisions primarily based on self-interest and incentives just like everyone else, not out of an altruistic goal of serving “the public good.” (This is why public choice economists have dubbed it “politics without romance.”)

I’ve previously pointed out that politicians were incentivized during the pandemic to embrace Covid restrictions even if they didn’t work because of the political climate in 2020. The absence of government regulations was viewed as actual violence by some public health experts, and those who didn’t embrace strict interventions were accused of genocide.

Moreover, the costs of these regulations tended to be dispersed, delayed, and hidden from view. Depression, drug overdoses, lost learning, and speech impediments were among the consequences of NPIs (Non-Pharmaceutical Interventions) imposed by governments. But the results of these policies were relatively “unseen” (to use a term from the 19th century economist Frederic Bastiat), at least compared to Covid deaths, which public health officials, the media, and even ordinary citizens tracked obsessively.

The costs of NPIs were quite serious, but they were quite low politically for the reasons stated above. The political costs of keeping a state open were much higher. No politician wants to explain why Mrs. Jackson, the 60-year-old math teacher, died from Covid while schools in your state remained open. (It would be just as tragic if Mrs. Jackson had died at home when schools were closed, but at least no politician would be blamed for her death in this case.)

In other words, the incentive structure early in the pandemic encouraged interventions, even if those interventions were ineffective and ultimately ended up doing more harm than good.

The incentive structure for vaccines is very different, particularly for young people.

Children can and do die from Covid, of course, but their risk is extremely low compared to other age groups. Even more important, perhaps, is that the costs of mandatory vaccination are not delayed, dispersed, or hidden from view. They are immediate, concentrated, and highly visible.

The sad reality is that vaccine injuries, though rare, do occur, as the CDC notes. And when they occur, they are the opposite of “unseen,” which means the political repercussions have the potential to be swift—and severe.

After all, when a young person dies after taking a vaccine designed to protect him, it’s a tragedy. When a young person dies of myocarditis after taking a vaccine he was forced to take to attend school, it’s a tragic event and a political disaster with a wide radius, even if some studies show the risk of myocarditis is greater after Covid infection than after Covid vaccination.

All of this analysis is dark and a bit troubling, of course. Now you see why they call public choice theory “politics without romance.”

But it might help explain why even state leaders comfortable with mandatory vaccination and vaccine passports have been reluctant to compel children to get the shot, even if they truly believe it could save lives.

Whether mandatory vaccination would have done more harm than good is a question we’ll never know, though it’s a debate that will likely continue for years to come. But because vaccines have the power to both save lives and claim lives, the decision to accept or refuse them can only morally be made by one person: the individual (or parents, if the decision concerns a child).

So at least state leaders are getting it right this time, even if they are doing so for the wrong reasons.

AUTHOR

Jon Miltimore

Jonathan Miltimore is the Managing Editor of FEE.org. His writing/reporting has been the subject of articles in TIME magazine, The Wall Street Journal, CNN, Forbes, Fox News, and the Star Tribune. Bylines: Newsweek, The Washington Times, MSN.com, The Washington Examiner, The Daily Caller, The Federalist, the Epoch Times.

EDITORS NOTE: This FEE column is republished with permission. ©All rights reserved.

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How perfect! The cavalry has arrived.

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EDITORS NOTE: This Geller Report column is republished with permission. ©All rights reserved.

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OSHA Pulls Private Vaccine Mandate After Supreme Court Loss

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) will withdraw a rule mandating that private businesses with more than 100 employees require that they be vaccinated against COVID-19 or undergo weekly testing against the virus.

OSHA will formally withdraw the rule on Wednesday, according to a document published Tuesday in an advanced version of the Federal Register. The rule, announced in November by President Joe Biden, was immediately challenged by several states and private companies, and the Supreme Court issued a stay on Jan. 13 while federal appeals courts consider its legality.

“After evaluating the Court’s decision, OSHA is withdrawing the Vaccination and Testing ETS as an enforceable emergency temporary standard,” the agency wrote in the Register.

The OSHA announcement was first reported by Bloomberg Law.

When he announced the rule, Biden argued that it would reduce the spread of COVID-19 by increasing the number of Americans who received vaccinations against the virus. Vaccines are less effective at reducing the spread of the newly-dominant Omicron variant, although they are still effective at preventing hospitalization and death.

“Some of the biggest companies are already requiring this,” Biden said in defending the rule. “United Airlines, Disney, Tyson food and even Fox News.”

However, OSHA suspended the rule’s enforcement in November, after the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals issued a stay. It never went back into effect.

Other portions of the Biden administration’s vaccine mandate plan have also been held up. A federal judge in Texas issued an injunction on Friday preventing the government from mandating that all federal employees and contractors receive COVID-19 vaccines. The judge, Jeffrey Brown, ruled that Biden could not issue such a mandate “with the stroke of a pen and without the input of Congress.”

Several lower court judges also blocked the federal government’s vaccine mandate for healthcare workers whose employers receive Medicare and Medicaid funds. However, the Supreme Court ruled that that mandate can remain in effect while its legality is debated at lower courts.

COLUMN BY

MICHAEL GINSBERG

Congressional reporter.

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England Ends Mask and Vaccine Mandate, Czech Republic Does Too, But US Democrats WANT MORE HARSH MANDATES

England ends mask mandates, working from home and vaccine passports. But in many countries, draconian restrictions still apply. So we must continue to campaign to end the mandates, restrictions and vaccine passports in other countries.

 

Prime Minister Boris Johnson ends mask and vaccine requirements in England

By Karen Curtis | WFTL January 19, 2022

Prime Minister Boris Johnson has scrapped his Covid-19 Plan B in England, no longer requiring face masks in school or working from home, signaling the beginning of the end of coronavirus.

Johnson also ended the use of Covid-19 passports.

Boris Johnson’s announcement followed a “welcome decrease” in the number of coronavirus infections throughout the UK.

“The numbers in intensive care not only remain low but are actually also falling.”

England will go to “Plan A”, on January 26th and the PM told the House of Commons that soon, self-isolation rules for people who test positive will be scrapped as well.

Will President Biden follow suit in the US? The president will speak today and take questions from the press about the COVID surge on this one year anniversary of his presidency.

England’s Covid Plan B restrictions including work-from-home guidance will be scrapped, the Prime Minister has announced.

Boris Johnson told MPs that people are no longer being asked to work from home and, from Thursday next week when Plan B measures lapse, mandatory Covid certification will end.

The Government will also no longer mandate the wearing of face masks anywhere from next Thursday and they will be scrapped in classrooms from tomorrow.

The Prime Minister also confirmed the intention to end the legal requirement to self-isolate when the regulations expire on March 24 and said the Government may move that date forward. (The Independent)

And in the Czech Republic:

Meanwhile, in barking mad left-wing America:

England ends mask mandates, working from home and vaccine passports. But Democrat America wants harsher measures still, including taking away your children…

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EDITORS NOTE: This Geller Report column is republished with permission. ©All rights reserved.

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Pennsylvania Supreme Court Strikes Down Mask Mandate

Yet another blow to the totalitarian Democrat’s power play on the CCP virus, their partners in the take down of this great but teetering country.

Pennsylvania high court throws out mask mandate for schools

By Mark Scolford, AP, December 10, 2021
First grade students at Dunmore Elementary Center in Dunmore, Pa., wear masks on their first day of classes on Aug. 27, 2020. The legality of an order by Pennsylvania’s acting state Health secretary requiring masks in K-12 schools and child care facilities is before the Pennsylvania Supreme Court. The two sides are set to argue their respective positions before the justices on Wednesday, Dec. 8, 2021 in Philadelphia. (Christopher Dolan/The Times-Tribune via AP)
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First grade students at Dunmore Elementary Center in Dunmore, Pa., wear masks on their first day of classes on Aug. 27, 2020. The legality of an order by Pennsylvania’s acting state Health secretary requiring masks in K-12 schools and child care facilities is before the Pennsylvania Supreme Court. The two sides are set to argue their respective positions before the justices on Wednesday, Dec. 8, 2021 in Philadelphia. (Christopher Dolan/The Times-Tribune via AP)

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — A statewide mask mandate for Pennsylvania schoolchildren was thrown out by the state Supreme Court on Friday, raising the prospect that at least some students in the state may soon be allowed to attend classes without a face covering.

The justices announced their decision to invalidate the Wolf administration’s statewide mandate for masks inside K-12 school buildings and child care facilities but did not issue a written opinion that explains their reasoning.

They upheld a lower-court decision that the mandate was imposed by Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf’s acting health secretary without legal authorization. The practical impact of the decision will depend on what the justices say in the written opinion or opinions they will issue in the case and which schools and school districts impose their own masking requirements.

The court took action amid a statewide surge in new infections and hospitalizations. Pennsylvania is reporting an average of 7,571 infections per day, up over 20% in two weeks. Hospitalizations have risen 55% since mid-November, to an average of more than 4,000 per day, and acute-care facilities are becoming overwhelmed.
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Wolf press secretary Beth Rementer described the decision as “extremely disappointing.”

“The administration recognizes that many school districts want to ensure a safe and healthy learning environment for students and staff, and we are hopeful they will make appropriate mitigation decisions moving forward,” Rementer said.

She urged districts to prioritize health and safety, calling masks “a proven and simple way to keep kids in school without interruption and participate in sports and other extracurricular activities.”

The justices upheld a Commonwealth Court ruling that Alison Beam, the acting state health secretary, lacked authority to require masks, did not follow state laws about enacting regulations and acted without a required existing disaster emergency declared by the governor in place.

The lower court found Pennsylvania’s disease control law does not give health secretaries “the blanket authority to create new rules and regulations out of whole cloth, provided they are related in some way to the control of disease or can otherwise be characterized as disease control measures.”

“The decision will be left to the 500 school districts in Pennsylvania, with respect to what to do with the implications of this order,” said Thomas W. King III, a lawyer for the Republican lawmakers, school districts, schools and parents who sued to challenge it.

King, who has advised against mask mandates, said school boards will have to consult their own lawyers about what policy to now adopt. As of the end of July, 59 of 474 school districts submitted plans to the state Education Department that mandated masks for the current school year.

“This is a great day in Pennsylvania for the rule of law,” King said. “The Supreme Court has proved that no one is above the law, and that includes the secretary of health or the governor.”

The decision comes just two days after the high court heard oral arguments in the case.

The lawsuit was filed by Senate President Pro Tempore Jake Corman, R-Centre; state Rep. Jesse Topper, R-Bedford; two religious schools; three public school districts; and several parents of schoolchildren.

Beam’s actions, the litigants argued, left the public unable to voice their opinions and the General Assembly unable to review the policy’s legality or necessity, and violated state law.

The attorney general’s office, representing Beam, told the court earlier this week there does not appear to be anything to prevent schools and school districts from issuing their own masking orders.

The mask mandate took effect in early September. Wolf announced in November he intends to return authority over masking decisions to local school districts in January, but will continue to require masks in child care centers and early learning programs.

AP writer Michael Rubinkam contributed from northeastern Pennsylvania.

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FREE V. SLAVE STATES: Masked, Lockdown California’s COVID Rate Is Now TWICE Florida’s

More news you will never hear in then Democrat state run press.

Masked California’s COVID rate is now twice Florida’s

California has mask requirements and a higher vaccination rate than Florida

By Emma Colton Fox News November 9, 2021:

Enriched Literacy Education Mary Cantwell and Brooke Ooten on research revealing children literacy suffering nationwide.

California’s coronavirus rate is double that of Florida, despite mask mandates and recommendations to prevent the spread of the virus.

“You’re paying for your success, which is weird,” Ali H. Mokdad, professor of health metrics sciences at the University of Washington, told the Mercury News when asked why Californians aren’t “reaping more reward for their adherence to health guidance.”

“You succeed in controlling the virus, and now you’re having infections.”

Gov. Gavin Newsom talks during a news conference at Universal Studios in Universal City, California. On Wednesday, he signed a bill into law intended to combat organized retail theft.  (AP Photo/Ringo H.W. Chiu, File)

FLORIDA HOSPITAL CELEBRATES ZERO COVID PATIENTS FOR FIRST TIME SINCE 2020

Cases in California are no longer falling, with the rate increasing to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s red “high” level of virus transmission stemming from the delta variant, the outlet reported.

But Southern states such as Texas and Florida – where state leaders do not enforce face mask policies or support other strict mandates – are in the CDC’s orange “substantial” transmission level.

California’s vaccination rate is higher than states such as Texas and Florida, but that still hasn’t stopped the outbreaks. Sixty-two percent of California’s total population is fully vaccinated, while Florida reports 60% and Texas 54%.

FLORIDA COVID CASES, DEATH RATE AMONG LOWEST IN THE COUNTRY

Gov. Gavin Newsom and other California leaders put some of the most strict coronavirus measures in place last year, which have continued into 2021.

In the Bay Area, health officials reimposed indoor face mask orders and won’t lift the measures until the area falls below the CDC’s orange “substantial” transmission level for three weeks or more. So far, most of the Bay Area counties still remain in the orange zone, besides San Francisco, which is in the yellow zone, the outlet reported.

California saw fewer cases of the delta variant over the summer with the state’s higher vaccination rate. Those who were not vaccinated and have recovered from the virus now also have immunity, the outlet reported, and the virus has a more difficult time spreading.

DESANTIS: WE ARE ACTIVELY RECRUITING OUT-OF-STATE POLICE OFFICERS OUT OF JOB DUE TO VACCINE MANDATES

“These regions are now being partly protected by high prior infection rates,” said Dr. Bob Wachter, chair of the medical department at the University of California-San Francisco. “But these people whose immunity comes from COVID-19 are not very well protected, and their immunity will wane with time.”

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis speaks during a press conference before newly appointed state Surgeon General Dr. Joseph Ladapo at Neo City Academy in Kissimmee, Florida, on Sept. 22, 2021.

Wachter added that with low booster shot rates and waning immunity, “the end result is that we’ve plateaued in our improvements, both nationally and in California, and it’s likely we’ll soon see some significant upticks.”

“California has done very well over the past few months, but we still have too many unvaccinated people,” he added. “People are spending more time inside and being more active, and masking is going down.”

Florida, meanwhile, hit another new benchmark last week. The first hospital in the state to treat a COVID patient last year, Doctor’s Hospital, announced that for the first time since the pandemic, it has no virus patients in its care.

“This is great news! For two weeks and counting, Florida has had the lowest rate of new COVID-19 cases in the entire country – with no mandates, vaccine passports, or lockdowns. Overall, COVID hospitalizations have been declining for more than 70 days straight, and we’re at an all time low in terms of the number of COVID patients hospitalized statewide,” Gov. Ron DeSantis’ press secretary, Christina Pushaw, told Fox News on Monday when asked for comment about Doctor’s Hospital in Sarasota.

“Gov. DeSantis is proud of Florida’s success with launching monoclonal antibody treatment sites throughout the state, which made a huge impact on lowering hospitalizations and saving lives. Early treatment – getting the monoclonal antibodies as soon as possible after testing positive or experiencing symptoms – cuts the risk of hospitalization by 70% or more,” Pushaw added.

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EDITORS NOTE: This Geller Report column is republished with permission. ©All rights reserved.

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