Oklahoma will bar state agencies from requiring masks or the COVID-19 vaccine, the state’s governor ordered Friday.
The order, which goes into effect Tuesday, mandates public buildings and office spaces “owned or leased by the State of Oklahoma” to rescind mandates for mask-wearing as a requirement “to receive government services,” and state agencies are prohibited from requiring a COVID-19 vaccination “as a condition of admittance to any public building.”
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“For over a year, the COVID-19 pandemic has affected the lives of all four million Oklahomans,” said Gov. Kevin Stitt in the text of the order. “Due to the fortitude of our people and the diligence of our medical professionals, our state is now in a position where every Oklahoman who wants a vaccine has had the ability to undergo a complete cycle. It is time to return to normal. In Oklahoma, the standard for normal is freedom.”
Stitt signed a bill Friday that would bar state schools or colleges from requiring vaccinations or masks for unvaccinated students.
“Taking the COVID-19 vaccine is a personal choice,” he said Friday. “I’ve signed SB 658, to ensure that students can go to school without that choice being made for them.”
Taking the COVID-19 vaccine is a personal choice.
I’ve signed SB 658, to ensure that students can go to school without that choice being made for them.
This bill also prevents schools from requiring vaccine passports or masks for unvaccinated students. pic.twitter.com/x14btU3bW9
— Governor Kevin Stitt (@GovStitt) May 28, 2021
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Oklahoma already requires its students to receive multiple types of vaccinations to attend school, but the order only addresses the coronavirus vaccine.
There are a “number of exemptions” for such vaccines, Charlie Hannema, the governor’s communication’s director, told the Washington Examiner. Under Oklahoma law, while a vaccine is technically required, parents can apply for an exemption for “medical, religious or personal reasons.”
