Virginia’s Department of Health says the CDC committee’s vote has “no direct, immediate” impact on the Commonwealth.
WASHINGTON — With a CDC committee voting to add the COVID-19 vaccine to the agency’s childhood immunization schedule, lawmakers around the country are vowing to hold the line against school mandates.
Following the CDC Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices vote on Thursday, the agency wrote in a press release, “CDC only makes recommendations for use of vaccines, while school-entry vaccination requirements are determined by state or local jurisdictions.”
That didn’t stop the pushback from Republican leaders.
“COVID-19 mandates should be in our rear view mirror,” Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin tweeted. “The decision to vaccinate a child against COVID-19 is for Virginia parents to make about what’s best for them and their family. We will not adhere to these @CDCgov mandates. In Virginia, parents matter.”
VERIFY and other fact-checking entities have since debunked this claim. The CDC recommends vaccines, and states get to choose what to require.
Now some people on social media are saying Virginia is one of a few states that is actually required to follow these CDC recommendations.
THE QUESTION:
Is Virginia required to adopt CDC’s immunization schedule for kids?
THE SOURCES:
THE ANSWER:
WHAT WE FOUND:
It’s understandable why some people might assume this.
Virginia Code reads in part children should be immunized, “in accordance with the Immunization Schedule developed and published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP)…”
However, it later says that required immunizations are set by the Board of Health.
“The required immunizations for attendance at a public or private elementary, middle or secondary school, child care center, nursery school, family day care home, or developmental center shall be those set forth in the State Board of Health Regulations for the Immunization of School Children.”
Our researchers also reached out to the Virginia Department of Health.
In a statement, they said Virginia law, “does not obligate the Board of Health to require every vaccine the CDC recommends for school entry in Virginia.”
They also said the CDC committee vote would have “no direct, immediate impact” in Virginia.
According to the health department, for policy to change, one of two things would have to happen: lawmakers would need to pass legislation, or the State Board of Health would need to update its policy, following a 60-day public comment period.
“As part of the action in HB 1090, the Code of Virginia requires that the Board of Health “shall amend the State Board of Health Regulations for the Immunization of School Children as necessary from time to time to maintain conformity with evidence-based, routinely recommended vaccinations for children,” a VDH spokesperson said. “This language gives the Board the ability to take actions that make sense for Virginia. This language does not obligate the Board of Health to require every vaccine the CDC recommends for school entry in Virginia.”
So we can VERIFY, no, Virginia is not required to automatically follow the CDC’s immunization schedule for kids.
