Virginia Health Commissioner Says He’ll Mandate COVID-19 Vaccine For All State Residents

Virginia’s Health Commissioner says he plans to mandate that all Virginians take a COVID-19 vaccine once one is available to the public.

“It is killing people now, we don’t have a treatment for it and if we develop a vaccine that can prevent it from spreading in the community we will save hundreds and hundreds of lives,” Dr. Norman Oliver told 8News on Friday.

Virginia state law gives the Commissioner of Health “the authority to mandate immediate immunizations during a public health crisis if a vaccine is available. Health officials say an immunization could be released as early as 2021,” 8News said. “Dr. Oliver says that, as long as he is still the Health Commissioner, he intends to mandate the coronavirus vaccine.”

Under state law in Virginia, people with a medical exemption are the only ones allowed to refuse the mandatory vaccine. The Virginia General Assembly is currently considering a bill during an ongoing special session that “eliminates the authority of the Commissioner of Health to require immunization of individuals who object to such administration on religious grounds.” The bill first needs to make it out of a committee in the House of Delegates, controlled by Democrats, before the full chamber will vote.

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