SACRAMENTO, Calif. — California Democrats were moving toward requiring COVID-19 vaccines for students and keeping them from opting out of shots with personal belief exemptions.
But the California Department of Public Health on Thursday announced it was delaying Gov. Gavin Newsom's school COVID-19 vaccine mandate until next year. And Sen. Richard Pan, D-Sacramento, said he was holding Senate Bill 871, which would have closed the personal belief exemption loophole.
As the end of the current school year approaches, COVID-19 is no longer at the forefront of voters' minds, there's been a lag in federal approvals for children's vaccines and just more than one-third of young children have gotten shots to protect them from the virus.
