School and other activities have started so now the question remains, should it be mandatory for all public school students over the age of 12 to be vaccinated? Covid-19 has been affecting everyone, including students. Now that the vaccine is out, schools have stopped distance learning and have started going back in.

Almost 50 percent of people ages 12-17 are fully vaccinated in the United States. While that percentage is high, it’s not at the level most would want it to be. On October 1, Governor Gavin Newsom announced that all students and staff must be vaccinated by January 2022. The vaccine has proven to be safe for use and has been FDA approved. While there are some side effects, it is nothing major and will go away after a few days.

It should be mandatory for all students, both in school or not, over the age of 12 to be vaccinated. Covid-19 is still at risk and being vaccinated gives students the ability to further interact with their classmates.

“If more people take it there would be less people in hospitals fighting for their lives,” said Elana Halteh. “By making the vaccine mandatory, it would encourage everyone, including those who are skeptical about the vaccine, to take it”.

Because of people getting the vaccine, cases are going down and places remain open. The number of deaths by Covid-19 have gone down since the vaccines have been encouraged. Mandating the vaccine would make everyone feel safer than just wearing a mask. If we want things to go back to how they were before the pandemic, taking these precautions help us meet that goal.

With the delta variant becoming more common, getting the vaccine and boosters would help the fight against it. The delta virus has the same symptoms as COVID-19, the only difference is that people are getting sicker quicker, especially younger people. Now younger people have a huge risk of getting this virus and it being fatal, which is why vaccines will be helpful within the student community.