California will become the first state in the nation to require all teachers and school staff to get vaccinated or undergo weekly COVID-19 testing, as schools return from summer break amid growing concerns about the highly contagious delta variant, Gov. Gavin Newsom announced Wednesday.
Newsom announced the new policy at a San Francisco Bay Area school that reopened earlier this week to in-person classes. Many California schools are back in session, with others starting in the coming weeks.
California, like the rest of the country, has seen a troubling surge in COVID-19 infections because of the delta variant, which represents the vast majority of new cases. It has affected children more than previous strains of the virus. For schools, Newsom had already issued a mask mandate that applies to teachers and students but until Wednesday had left the decision of whether to require vaccines up to local districts.
As the virus has surged, particularly among children who are too young to be vaccinated, a growing number of teachers unions have eased their opposition to vaccine mandates. "Educators want to be in classrooms with their students, and the best way to make sure that happens is for everyone who is medically eligible to be vaccinated, with robust testing and multi-tiered safety measures," CTA President E. Toby Boyd said in a statement.
Canada Latest News, Canada Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
University of Ottawa makes COVID-19 vaccination mandatory for in-class learningDecision comes as postsecondary schools across Canada face calls for stronger measures when students return to campus
Read more »
U.S. hospitals run low on nurses as they get swamped with COVID-19The rapidly escalating surge in COVID-19 infections across the U.S. has caused a shortage of nurses and other front-line staff in virus hot spots that can no longer keep up with the flood of unvaccinated patients and are losing workers to burnout and lucrative out-of-state temporary gigs.
Read more »
Third COVID-19 vaccine dose effective and safe for transplant recipients: studyA third dose of COVID-19 vaccine provides substantially more protection against the coronavirus in transplant patients, providing hope for other immunocompromised individuals, according to a world-first study.
Read more »
COVID-19 worries send Emmy Awards show outdoorsThe Emmy Awards ceremony for achievement in television was moved outdoors on Tuesday in the latest setback to live events because of rising concerns over the coronavirus pandemic.
Read more »