California moving ahead with a mandate for teachers

California on Wednesday became the first state to require all teachers and staff in every school district be vaccinated against COVID-19 or submit to regular testing.

Under the new requirement, all staff – teachers, custodial staff, bus drivers and anyone else who works in schools – will need to submit proof of vaccination or submit to weekly testing, Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) said at a news conference at an elementary school in Oakland.

The order comes as California, like the rest of the country, has seen a rise in COVID-19 infections and hospitalizations this summer as the delta variant took hold.

“We think this is a sustainable way of keeping schools open,” Newsom said. “And to address the No. 1 anxiety that parents like myself have – I have four young children – and that is knowing that the schools are doing everything in their power to keep their kids healthy.”

Newsom noted the state was one of the first to mandate masks for all teacher and students. Until the announcement Wednesday, he had left the decision of vaccines up to individual districts.