Poll: Majority of parents against school vaccine mandates, support mask requirements

Most parents oppose COVID-19 vaccination mandates at schools, but a majority back requirements for unvaccinated students and staff to wear masks at schools, according to a Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF) poll.

The KFF COVID-19 Vaccine Monitor released Wednesday determined that 58 percent of parents of 12- to 17-year-old children who are eligible for the COVID-19 shot are against schools requiring these vaccinations for in-person learning.

Fifty-four percent of parents of school-age children still disapproved of a vaccine mandate even if the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) offered full approval for the vaccines. So far, the agency has granted emergency use authorizations for the three vaccines to be administered only during the public health emergency.

But 63 percent of parents of all school-age children said schools should mandate masks for unvaccinated students and staff in the building.

The poll comes amid the ongoing debate on the safest way to return to in-person learning after the pandemic required children across the country to attend classes remotely.