Republican Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine signed legislation on Wednesday forbidding public schools and universities in the state from mandating any vaccination that lacks full Food and Drug Administration approval — covering all the COVID-19 vaccines, which have only gotten emergency approval.
An amendment to H.B. 244, OK’d by DeWine, states public educational institutions are not permitted to discriminate “against an individual who has not received the vaccine, including by requiring the individual to engage in or refrain from engaging in activities or precautions that differ” from those who have received the jabs.
However, the Ohio Department of Health can still demand quarantine for students and others who arrive at the state from different countries.
NO EVIDENCE OHIO VACCINE LOTTERY INCREASED VACCINATION RATES, STUDY FINDS
Vaccinations from Pfizer, Moderna, and Johnson & Johnson only received emergency use authorization and have yet to clear the final approval hurdle from the FDA. It is unclear when the government body will reach its determination, though President Joe Biden’s chief medical adviser Anthony Fauci said he’d be “astounded” if each was not fully approved.
“The data are about as good as it gets … I would be astounded if these vaccines, namely the mRNA and the J&J, didn’t get full approval,” Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, told CNBC on Tuesday.
“Even though we are still under an emergency use authorization, it’s a bit different than other emergency use authorizations, which usually are granted with not nearly as much positive data as we have for these products,” he added.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
At least seven other states — including Florida, Alabama, Montana, and Arkansas — have approved bills to either partially restrict how schools can require vaccines or prevent them from requiring documentation from students.
About 48% of the United States’s population has been fully vaccinated, while 56% have received at least one dose, according to data compiled by the New York Times. The country has experienced a 109% uptick in cases over the last two weeks, with a 19% increase in hospitalizations and a 17% increase in deaths.
