Vaccine should be required

Posted Feb. 3, 2022

By Tristan Hansen

Staff Editor

Given current circumstances, the district ought to seriously consider implementing a Covid vaccine mandate for students.

With the emergence of the Omicron variant, cases and deaths have risen dramatically all throughout the world, including here in Multnomah County. Many students and staff have been quarantined during this period, and it’s understood that a return to CDL could happen at any moment. Given these circumstances, the district should consider a common-sense safety measure—a student Covid-19 vaccine mandate.

Critics have portrayed vaccine mandates as extreme, absurd, and draconian, but prior to the pandemic school vaccine mandates were fairly uncontroversial. Oregon law already requires all students to be immunized against diphtheria, tetanus, measles, mumps, polio, and others at various age and grade levels, and none of these diseases are currently causing a global pandemic that is killing millions of people. The U.S. has not had a single case of polio, for example, since 1979.

Teachers have been required to be vaccinated since October, so why not enact the same policy for students? A full 24% of those ages 12-17 in Multnomah County still have not completed a two-dose series yet. Mandating at least two doses of the Covid vaccine would surely reduce the number of unvaccinated students, and therefore reduce spread.

With Portland Public delaying a vote on the matter for another six months, and no school district outside of California having yet chosen to take this step, David Douglas has an opportunity to be a real leader in this regard. Even if a full mandate is impractical, any mandate in any form would represent unambiguous progress.