Teacher Vaccine Mandates Have Transformed The Fight Against COVID-19

On Monday, October 4th, New York City Mayor Bill De Blasio confirmed the institution of the vaccine mandate for all DOE employees. In less than a month, this policy has already taken full effect: over 99 percent of all principals, 96 percent of teachers and 94 percent of non-education staff have received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine.

Following the first week of October, educators without their first dose of the vaccine would be forbidden from entering their respective school buildings, instead being placed on unpaid leave. While this policy initially posed the threat of staffing shortages, the mayor quickly assured the general public that the city was prepared to call upon their numerous substitute professionals to fill in any temporary vacancies.

“We have a lot of talented young people who are ready to take those jobs,” DeBlasio noted to The Times.

With such a weighted policy being promptly instituted and back-up options already in place, teachers were left faced with an ultimatum: get vaccinated or lose their jobs.

As a result, vaccine mandates have continued to be enshrouded in a heat of controversy. While some applaud the mayor for taking the necessary steps to protect New York citizens, others critique the policies that “infringe on their personal freedom.”

It is important that despite these heavily-polarized discussions, the public recognizes the importance of the vaccine mandates and the effect to which they’re transforming our country’s fight against COVID-19. In a nation with over 45 million cases of the virus contracted across 50 states, individuals must come to recognize that in desperate times, desperate measures must inevitably be taken. Personal freedom does not take precedence over public safety.

Hesitancies to Receive COVID-19 mRNA Vaccines

According to the interactive COVID-19 vaccine tracker updated by the Mayo Clinic, the percentages of total Americans vaccinated across the nation are far from settling. While certain states like New York, California, and New Mexico are home to the greatest number of vaccinated citizens (roughly 65%), other states like Wyoming, Alabama, and West Virginia teeter on the edge of 40%.

Several factors prevent the majority of Americans from getting vaccinated. Whether it be vaccine inaccessibility, medical mistrust, or circulating media misinformation, there are numerous barriers in play that continue to exacerbate rising COVID-19 cases. Moreover, with the political divide between Democrat and Republican parties continuing to deepen, more nuanced factors– resulting from extreme political influence — have contributed to the vaccine phenomenon.

“There may be a modest shift of a few points in the pro-vaccine direction, but the hardcore vaccine resistant probably are not going to shift very much,” says David Lazer, professor of political science and computer sciences at Northeastern University. “If you don’t trust the FDA, and then the FDA says ‘OK, all is good now,’ we probably won’t see dramatic changes,” he notes.

Professor Lazer remains hopeful that companies will make strides in future vaccine distribution, but “that’s not going to happen within months, unfortunately,” he says.

The point is, as long as Americans continue to be swayed by anti-vaccination propaganda, as long as media misinformation continues to circulate across social media, as long as the systemic barriers to vaccines accessibility continue to remain prevalent, the United States’ fight against COVID-19 will hit a stagnation.

It is time that state governments takes matters into their own hands.

Teacher Vaccine Mandates Promise to Keep New York Safe

Arguably, schools are one of the likeliest places for COVID-19 cases to be contracted. In New York City’s large public high schools, with thousands of students gathered in overcrowded classrooms, hallways, and one-way staircases, rising transmission rates of the virus remain a waning threat.

While DeBlasio cannot issue vaccine mandates for all New York City students, many of whom are under-age and much less likely to be immunocompromised than their older counterparts, the mayor can ensure that teaching faculty are effectively protected.

“Anyone who’s eligible for a vaccine, if you want to be around children, you’ve got to do whatever you can to protect them. And if you’re eligible to get vaccinated, get vaccinated,” urges Dr. Anthony Fauci, who believes teacher vaccinations are critical now more than ever. More than just a threat to faculty themselves, COVID-19 can easily be brought home with students: entering households and spreading to older family members. Teacher vaccine mandates promise to protect the students (and their loved ones) from the risks posed by the virus.

Research continues to validate the large role that educators play in school COVID-19 transmission rates. In a recent study cited by the CDC, researchers surveyed elementary schools in Georgia– where mask use and social distancing was said to be inadequate. The investigation, which involved over 2,600 students and 700 staff members, resulted in nine clusters of COVID-19 cases across six elementary schools. Two of the nine clusters involved teacher-to-teacher transmission, followed by teacher-to-student transmission in classrooms. In total, transmission from teachers resulted in about half of 31 school-related cases (Reuters).

“These findings suggests that educators can play an important role in in-school transmission and that in-school transmission can occur when physical distancing and mask compliance are not optimal,” the report detailed.

Evidently, teacher vaccine mandates have a significant role in curbing the spread of COVID-19. While many educators prefer to leave the vaccination choice in their own hands, mandates promise that all faculty are held accountable for their actions. As a result, educators have increased economic incentive to not just protect themselves, but also protect the millions of students’ lives they’re inherently putting at risk.

How New York is a Stepping Stone for the Rest of the Nation

As the largest city in the United States (with a population of over eight billion individuals), New York promises to be the gateway to nationwide vaccination mandates.

With the threat of the rising Delta Variant, alongside the sudden shift back to in-person learning, schools are a hub for COVID-19 transmission. DeBlasio’s state policy, while a source of fervent public controversy, places the safety and health of families over individualized choice.

Notably, the pushback in New York City against teacher vaccine mandates is a fraction of the dispute state governments would witness in more right-wing states: whether it be Arkansas, Montana or South Carolina. However, as the United States continues to seek solutions to ameliorate the pandemic crisis, New York can serve as a working role model to the rest of the nation: championing a system where teachers, students, and families are all protected.

Instituting teacher vaccine mandates is the most necessary next step in our long-term fight against COVID-19.