A small group of Republican lawmakers in the House asked the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to give those working in K-12 schools prioritization to receive COVID-19 vaccines after healthcare workers and nursing home residents.
A Friday letter with the request comes before the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices meets this weekend, during which it could potentially expand interim guidance in order to provide vaccine preference to school workers.
Indiana Rep. Jim Banks and Pennsylvania Rep. Fred Keller of the Education and Labor Committee, along with Wisconsin Rep. Tom Tiffany and Georgia Rep. Austin Scott of Georgia, signed the letter, first provided to the Washington Examiner.
“Schools across the country are closing again due to staffing shortages caused by exposure to COVID-19. When schools initially shut down last fall, there was uncertainty about the potential negative mental, physical and educational effects on our children,” the letter states. “There’s no uncertainty anymore. School closures have been disastrous for our children’s well-being.”
Currently, the guidance prioritizes healthcare workers and residents of long-term care facilities.
“Relative to adults, children are not very threatened by coronavirus infection. For those under 18, it’s about as dangerous as the flu. But they rely on educators to meet their health needs, to learn and ultimately to grow into healthy and happy adults. Every day spent out of the classroom makes that more difficult,” the letter said. “We’ve learned that to best fight against coronavirus, we need teachers fighting, safely, in-person and on the front-line.”
Banks was a lead sponsor of the “Open Our Schools Act” in June, which proposed barring federal funds to schools unless they reopened by Sept. 8.
Vice President Mike Pence, 61, and Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, 80, received the coronavirus vaccine on Friday. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has said he will also receive the vaccine in the coming days, and President-elect Joe Biden will receive the shot on Monday.
