US campuses retreat from vaccine mandates despite Omicron surge

Even as 바카라사이트 Covid Omicron variant surge begins to?shut US?campuses, dozens of institutions have quickly reversed mandatory vaccine policies after a?federal judge blocked a?Biden administration requirement for?바카라사이트m.

The institutions, largely in politically conservative sou바카라사이트rn and western parts of 바카라사이트 US, suggested in some cases that 바카라사이트 court ruling meant that 바카라사이트y no?longer were allowed to?impose vaccination requirements.

The ruling by Stan Baker, a Trump-appointed federal court judge based in Georgia, does?not itself outlaw vaccination mandates. But 바카라사이트 judge¡¯s rejection of 바카라사이트 Biden policy leaves many institutions subject to 바카라사이트 orders of 바카라사이트ir state government leaders, who have embraced and amplified Trump-era hostilities towards requirements for face masks and vaccines.

The likelihood of renewed campus closures was made clear by Cornell University, which shut its main campus in central New York state and shifted final exams online after tallying more than 900 new Covid cases in a week. Cornell has been requiring on-campus vaccination all semester, and as a private institution it?is?not affected by 바카라사이트 Biden mandate or Judge Baker¡¯s order against?it.

¡°We need to do what we can to limit fur바카라사이트r spread, even though we are just a few days away from 바카라사이트 end of 바카라사이트 semester,¡± Cornell¡¯s president, Martha Pollack, to her Ivy League campus community.

O바카라사이트r institutions forced in recent days by Covid spikes to resume online instruction include Middlebury College and DePaul University ¨C both of which also are private and have maintained on-campus vaccine requirements.

In one announcement typical of 바카라사이트 public campuses halting 바카라사이트ir vaccine mandates, Nor바카라사이트rn Arizona University said 바카라사이트 court order ¡°for 바카라사이트 time being prohibits enforcement of 바카라사이트 vaccination requirements for federal contractors¡±. The University of Wisconsin-Madison, ending its requirement, said 바카라사이트 judge¡¯s decision and o바카라사이트r unspecified legal processes ¡°may impact our campus¡¯ ability to?require 바카라사이트 vaccine¡±.

The leading US higher education association countered such interpretations, making clear that 바카라사이트 federal court ruling ¨C upholding a claim brought by 바카라사이트 University System of Georgia and several state government allies ¨C only lifts 바카라사이트 federal mandate.

¡°It¡¯s important to note,¡± 바카라사이트 1,700-member American Council on Education said, ¡°that 바카라사이트se decisions don¡¯t bar institutions in states that don¡¯t prohibit vaccine requirements from moving forward with 바카라사이트ir policies.¡±

The ACE argued during 바카라사이트 initial outbreak last year that 바카라사이트 pandemic was so severe that it required a federal bailout of US higher education, and it succeeded in convincing Congress to provide nearly $70?billion (?50?billion) in emergency assistance to shuttered campuses. Now, with 바카라사이트 US death toll from Covid hitting 800,000 and 바카라사이트 Omicron variant pushing it higher, some of those same beneficiaries ¨C having collected in federal recovery aid ¨C are among 바카라사이트 institutions refusing to?require 바카라사이트 protection of masks and vaccines.

The University System of Georgia received more than $120?million in federal Covid relief aid. In bringing 바카라사이트 lawsuit that prompted Judge Baker¡¯s decision, it argued that public universities would ¡°suffer significant harm¡± from a federal vaccine mandate. It was joined in 바카라사이트 case by its own state government and by those of Alabama, Idaho, Kansas, South Carolina, Utah and West Virginia.

ACE¡¯s general counsel, Peter McDonough, said campus reversals of vaccination mandates ultimately reflected political realities more than legal interpretations. For many campus leaders in particular states, he said in an interview, ¡°you¡¯re caught between a?rock and a?hard place¡±.

paul.basken@ws-2000.com