Oakland Unified to enforce student vaccine requirement starting Jan. 1

Oakland Unified will require all students 12 and older to be fully vaccinated against Covid-19 by Jan. 1, or else enroll in the district’s independent study program.

The district’s enforcement plan, passed by a 4-3 vote at a school board meeting Wednesday, has a quicker timeline than the state’s vaccine mandate. The state mandate allows districts to implement the mandate after the vaccine receives full approval by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for ages 12-15. Currently, the vaccine has emergency use authorization by the FDA for children ages 12-15 and full approval for ages 16 and older.

The district is allowing several exemptions to the mandate, such as for medical reasons or “personal belief.” The district will also allow children 12 and older to come to school after Jan. 1 if they have received both of their shots, even though a person is only considered “fully vaccinated” after two weeks of receiving the second dose of the vaccine.

Any families who don’t comply will be guaranteed admission into the district’s independent study program.