The University Of Hawaii Decides Not To Require Covid-19 Booster Shots
The university had said it was considering adding boosters to its vaccination mandate as the omicron-driven coronavirus surge drove up cases.
University of Hawaii students, faculty and staff will not be required to get a booster shot to be considered fully vaccinated against Covid-19, President David Lassner told the Board of Regents on Thursday.
Along with other institutions, the university said last month that it was considering adding a booster shot to its standing vaccination mandate as the omicron variant led to a record number of Covid cases.
Lassner made his decision as the number of cases is on the decline, with the seven-day average dropping to 68%, The state reported 650 new cases on Thursday, raising the total to 233,155 since the pandemic started in March 2020.
“After a number of discussions with our health and well-being working group and our policy group, we have decided not to recommend implementation of a booster requirement at this time,” Lassner said. “This shift was driven by the rapid decline in cases and hospitalizations, as well as the practical challenges with implementing a firm booster requirement policy.”
To back the decision, Lassner also noted that Gov. David Ige had announced that no boosters are needed for travelers coming to Hawaii.
“I think we’re in good company on this position,” Lassner said.
Lassner said the university will continue to monitor the situation.
UH students returned to class on Jan. 31 after moving to online learning due to the Covid surge.
The university already requires people to be fully vaccinated.
, 99.9% of students and 96.4% of employees are fully vaccinated.
