LSU to Mandate COVID Vaccine

LSU students and faculty members will soon be required to receive the COVID vaccine.

LSU President William Tate announced Thursday that the university will issue a vaccine mandate once the Food and Drug Administration gives full approval to one or more of the COVID vaccines currently on the market. This announcement comes nearly one week after Tate told reporters that he would consider issuing such a mandate.

The full statement reads as follows:

Dear LSU students:

Welcome to all of our new and returning students. Our collective experience this academic year depends on our ability to navigate the pandemic. You share in the responsibility of lowering our risk of disease spread. As I say in this video message, we expect the FDA to fully authorize one or more of the COVID vaccines in the next few weeks, at which point we will act swiftly to mandate it at LSU. In the meantime, I strongly encourage you to go ahead and get vaccinated now to protect yourself, your peers, and the faculty and staff who will be alongside you through your academic journey.

We look forward to seeing you soon.

Sincerely,

William F. Tate IV

LSU President

Classes at LSU begin on August 23, two weeks before the FDA is expected to give its approval to a vaccine. In a video message published to LSU's YouTube account, Tate urges members of the LSU community to get the vaccine now instead of waiting for any mandate from his office.

LSU has vaccination sites set up on its campuses. A full list of those vaccination sites can be found on the university's website.

One LSU professor says this decision by Tate is not enough. On his Twitter page, Manship School professor Bob Mann said Tate's office should consider other means of protecting students and faculty from COVID-19, including issuing the vaccine mandate now.

Meanwhile, other are criticizing the decision because they feel it's not Tate's and LSU's place to require anyone to get the vaccine.

A few others are celebrating the move.