SEATTLE (AP) — Authorities say schools in Washington state won’t consider a requirement to mandate COVID-19 vaccines in schoolchildren until a vaccine is fully approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The FDA on Monday signed off on emergency use of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine in 12- to 15-year-olds. The state’s secretary of health, Umair Shah, said Tuesday more than 370,000 Washington teens and adolescents are in this age group. Teens ages 16 and up are already eligible. The Seattle Times reports that until a COVID-19 vaccine is formally approved, however, officials from the Washington State Board of Health — the board that oversees state vaccine policies — say they won’t consider adding it to the list of required immunizations.
Washington not yet weighing school COVID vaccine mandate
