Trump moves to defund schools with COVID vaccine mandates

The big picture: There are few such requirements left, but the move echoes a campaign pledge to defund schools with vaccine mandates and comes a day after noted vaccine critic Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was sworn in as HHS secretary.

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• “Such mandates usurp parental authority and burden students of many faiths,” the order states.
• It doesn’t mention commonly required school immunizations for conditions like diphtheria, tetanus, polio, whooping cough, measles or mumps.

Context: While children are generally required to get several vaccinations before attending public school, exemptions can be given for medical reasons or due to moral objections, depending on local rules.

• Lingering vaccine hesitancy from the pandemic is prompting more parents to opt out of common childhood shots, often with nonmedical religious exemptions.
• The share of kindergartners with vaccine exemptions increased in 40 states plus Washington, D.C., during the 2023-24 school year, per the CDC.