SACRAMENTO, Calif. — A bill requiring California students to be immunized for COVID-19 will not move forward, its author said Thursday, marking the second major piece of vaccination legislation to be pulled this year at the state Capitol before its first vote.
State Sen. Richard Pan, D-Calif., said he will pull from consideration Senate Bill 871, which would have added COVID-19 vaccines to California's list of required inoculations for attending K-12 schools, prerequisites that can be skipped only if a student receives a rare medical exemption from a doctor.
Without the bill, the state will continue with a less strict COVID-19 vaccine mandate authorized last year by Gov. Gavin Newsom, allowing parents to opt their children out based on personal beliefs.
