White House says teacher vaccinations not required for schools to reopen

White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Wednesday that vaccinating teachers is not a requirement for reopening schools for in-person learning.

“Neither the president nor the vice president believe that it is a requirement,” Psaki said at a briefing when asked whether teachers need to be vaccinated before they return to school.

Psaki said that Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidelines issued on Friday “included a range of mitigation steps, including vaccinations, as recommendations, but the mitigation steps also included steps like social distancing, smaller class sizes, the need for sanitation.”

“At the same time, the president and vice president also believe that teachers should be prioritized,” Psaki continued. “That’s up to states to determine.”

Why it matters: The White House has been careful about wading into the debate around vaccines and reopening schools, as teachers’ unions demand access to vaccines before returning to work.