Pritzker Considering Requiring College Students to Get COVID-19 Vaccine
Governor JB Pritzker at Illinois State University in Normal earlier this year.
Governor JB Pritzker said Wednesday he is considering requiring college students to receive the COVID-19 vaccine before returning to campus next fall.
From the Chicago Sun-Times:
“We want everybody to get vaccinated, there’s no doubt. As to whether we would require people to get vaccinated in order to come back on campus, that’s something that’s under some discussion around the nation,” Pritzker said during an unrelated news conference at Heartland Community College in downstate Normal.
Some private universities have already announced vaccine requirements, including three in Chicago: Columbia College, DePaul University and Loyola University Chicago. The public university system in Massachusetts announced a mandate earlier this week.
For now, though, Pritzker wants to see students make that choice for themselves.
“What we want right now is for people to raise their hand and say, ‘I want to get vaccinated.’ And unlike two months ago, those vaccinations are available now,” Pritzker said. “If you want to get vaccinated, essentially over the next two weeks and beyond, you’re going to be able to raise your hand and go somewhere today to get vaccinated… So we’re encouraging students on campuses, these are young adults really, to choose to get vaccinated.”
University of Illinois spokesperson says, for now, the University is focused on getting students vaccinated. She says a survey a couple of weeks ago showed “90% [of students] said they either have been vaccinated or planned to be as soon as the state allowed them to do so.”