{"id":25759,"date":"2020-08-22T18:59:55","date_gmt":"2020-08-22T22:59:55","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/stateofthenation.co\/?p=25759"},"modified":"2020-08-22T18:59:55","modified_gmt":"2020-08-22T22:59:55","slug":"well-if-this-doesnt-bring-out-the-guns-i-dont-know-what-will-g-viejo","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/stateofthenation.co\/?p=25759","title":{"rendered":"“Well, if this doesn’t bring out the guns I don’t know what will.” — G. Viejo"},"content":{"rendered":"

Virginia’s top health official will make it mandatory for everyone to get COVID-19 vaccine<\/h1>\n

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SILVIO AVILA\/AFP via Getty Images<\/p><\/div><\/p>\n

A 1905 Supreme Court case suggests that this action might be legal<\/h3>\n

Virginia’s top health official said he would make COVID-19 vaccinations mandatory in the state once coronavirus vaccines are available.<\/p>\n

Virginia Commissioner of Health Dr. Norman Oliver told\u00a0WFXR-TV<\/a>\u00a0that he plans to impose a coronavirus vaccine mandate for everyone in the state.<\/p>\n

“It [the coronavirus] 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,” Oliver said on Friday.<\/p>\n

Virginia state law gives the Commissioner of Health the authority to mandate immunizations during a public health crisis if a vaccine is available, according to\u00a0WRIC-TV<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Oliver said he doesn’t know what the punishment should be for Virginians who refuse to get a COVID-19 vaccine. “I think the overwhelmingly majority of people would, in fact, respond well,” Oliver said of mandatory coronavirus vaccinations.<\/p>\n

A Yahoo News\/YouGov poll conducted between July 28-30 found that\u00a0only 42% of all Americans said they would get vaccinated<\/a>\u00a0“if and when a coronavirus vaccine becomes available.”<\/p>\n

Under current Virginia law, only people with a medical exemption could refuse the vaccine mandate.<\/p>\n

The Virginia General Assembly is considering\u00a0a bill<\/a>\u00a0that would allow an exemption to the immunization mandate to people “who object to such administration on religious grounds.” HB 5016, which was introduced by Mark L. Cole (R-Spotsylvania), would need to clear a house committee before the full chamber could vote on it.<\/p>\n

There were seven people hospitalized in the state because of coronavirus on Aug. 20, according to the Virginia Department of Health\u00a0website<\/a>. The peak hospitalizations in Virginia was 120 on May 1. As of Aug. 18, Virginia’s seven-day average for percentage of positive test results was at 6.5%, down from a peak of 20.8% on April 21. Since July 15, Virginia has had two days with double-digit daily COVID-19 deaths: 12 fatalities on July 25 and 10 on July 29.<\/p>\n