Abstract
Although vaccination requirements have been a mainstay of university admissions, the recent shift in vaccination and other preventative measures to reduce the spread of COVID-19 has been met with resistance. Reviewing the vaccination literature, there has been an apparent shift in support for university vaccinations, which is largely a result of the politicized climate surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic. Using a mixed-methods analysis, this study examines how type of institution and location variables affect public and private universities implementation of vaccination mandates and other preventative measures. Data indicate that, similar to other studies, politics matter and higher institutions are finding themselves at odds with state governments in which campus and community safety is not the primary concern.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
Notes
University policies were only noted if the university specifically mentioned them. The quality and frequency of COVID-19 information and communication varied greatly between universities. Researchers double checked for information that could not be located even searching newspaper reports to ensure the accuracy of the data.
References
Acton, R.K., Cao, W., Cook, E.E., Imberman, S., and Lovenhein, M. (2022) ‘The effect of vaccine mandates on disease spread: Evidence from college COVID-19 mandates’, Cambridge, MA: National Bureau of Economic Research. Working Paper no. 30303
Allen, J.D., Wenhui, F., Corlin, L., Porteney, T., Acevedo, A., Schildkraut, D., et al. (2021) Why are some people reluctant to be vaccinated for COVID-19? A cross-sectional survey among U.S. adults in May-June 2020. Preventative Medicine Reports 24: 1–7
American College Health Association. (2022) COVID-19 considerations for institutions in higher educations, Fall 2022. ACHA report, 15 August, https://www.acha.org/documents/Resources/Guidelines/ACHA_COVID_Considerations_for_IHEs_Fall_2022.pdf/ Accessed 22/08/2022
American Council on Education. (2021) Pulse point survey explores politicization of COVID-19 vaccines’ impact on colleges, ACE report, 17 December, https://www.acenet.edu/News-Room/Pages/Pulse-Point-Survey-Explores-Politicization-COVID19-Vaccines-Impact-Colleges.aspx/ Accessed 12/08/2022
Andersen, M.S., Bento, A.I., Basu, A., Marsicano, C. and Simon, K. (2021) College opening in the United States: Increased mobility and COVID-19 influence. PLOS One 17(8): e0272820
Berg, B.L. (2004) Qualitative research methods for the social sciences (5th ed.), Boston, MA: Pearson Education.
Blackman, J. (2021) The irrepressible myth of Jacobson v Massachusetts. Buffalo Law Review 70: 1–107
Bolsen, T. and Palm, R. (2022) Politicization and COVID-19 vaccine resistance in the U.S. Progress in Molecular Biology and Translational Science 188(1): 81–100
Bowen, R.A.R. (2020) Ethical and organizational considerations for mandatory COVID-19 vaccination of health care workers: A clinical laboratorian’s perspective. Clinica Chimica Acta 510: 421–422
Brown v. Stone. (1980) 378 So.2d 218 (Miss. 1980)
Browning, M.H.E.M., Larson, L.R., Sharaievska, I., Rigolon, A., McAnirlin, O., Mullenbach, L., et al. (2021) Psychological impacts from COVID-19 among university students: Risk factors across seven states in the United States. PLoS ONE 16(1): e0245327
Brunson, E.K., Rohde, R.E. and Fulton, L.V. (2021) College students’ willingness to accept COVID-19 vaccines. Journal of American College Health. https://doi.org/10.1080/07448481.2021.1996375
Buck v. Bell. (1927) 274 U.S. 200
Burke, P., Masters, D. and Massey, G. (2021) Enablers and barriers to COVID-19 vaccine uptake: An international study of perceptions and intentions. Vaccine 39(36): 5116–5128
Burt, C. (2021) State-by-state look at colleges requiring Covid-19 vaccines, University Business, 17 April, https://universitybusiness.com/author/cburt/ Accessed 01/08/2022
Campos-Mercade, P., Meier, A.N., Schneider, F.H., Meier, S., Pope, D. and Wengström, E. (2021) Monetary incentives increase COVID-19 vaccinations. Science 374(6569): 879–882
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention [CDC] (n.d.) Guidance for institutions of higher education (IHES). CDC report, https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/community/colleges-universities/considerations.html#:~:text=CDC%20recommends%20universal%20indoor%20masking,layered%20prevention%20strategies%20in%20place/ Accessed 01/01/2022
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). (2021) COVID-19 vaccinations in the United States. https://www.scholar.google.com/scholar?q=CDC+Covid-19+vaccinations+in+the+United+States,county+2021+#d=gs_cit&t=1689086347881&u=%2Fscholar%3Fq%3Dinfo%3AU4Imbj8XgmQJ%3Ascholar.google.com%2F%26output%3Dcite%26scirp. Accessed 01/08/2022
Chapman, G.B., Vietri, L., Ibuka, Y., Thomas, D., Yoon, H. and Galvani, A.P. (2012) Using game theory to examine incentives in influenza vaccination behavior. Psychological Science 23(9): 1008–1015
Chun, A.M., Malson, L.P., Rode, S., and Esseck, K. (2020) ‘Kiel, et al. v. The Regents of the University of California, et al.: Major takeaways from a California court decision upholding a flu vaccination mandate and implications for the COVID-19 vaccine’, Nacua Notes 13(2): 1-9.
Church of Latter-Day Saints. (2021) The First Presidency urges Latter-Day Saints to wear face masks when needed and get vaccination against COVID-19. Church of Latter-Day Saints 19 August, https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/first-presidency-message-covid-19-august-2021/ Accessed 1/08/2022
Colgrove, J. and Lowin, A. (2016) A tale of two states: Mississippi, West Virginia, and exemptions to compulsory school vaccination laws. Health Affairs 35(2): 348–355
Collier, D.A., Fitzpatrick, D., Dell, M., et al. (2022) We want you back: Uncovering the effects of in-person instructional operations in Fall 2020. Research in Higher Education 63: 741–767
Crowley v. Christensen. (1890). 137 U.S. 86, 89
DeSilver, D. (2021) States have mandated vaccinations since long before COVID-19. Pew Research Center, 8 October, https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2021/10/08/states-have-mandated-vaccinations-since-long-before-covid-19/ Accessed 22/08/2022
Does v. Mills. (2021) 142 S. Ct. 17
Dooling, K., Marin, M., Wallace, M., McClung, N., Chamberland, M., Lee, G.M., Oliver, S.E. (2021) ‘The advisory committee on immunization practices’ updated interim recommendation for allocation of COVID-19 vaccine — United States, December 2020’, Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report 69: 1657-1660
Fawole, O.A., Srivastava, T., Fasano, C. and Feemster, K.A. (2018) Evaluating variability in immunization requirements and policy among U.S. colleges and universities. Journal of Adolescent Health 63(3): 286–292
Felson, J. and Adamczyk, A. (2021) ‘Online or in person? Examining college decisions to reopen during the COVID-19 pandemic in fall 2020’, Socius 7 advance online publication January 21. https://doi.org/10.1177/2378023120988203
Gostin, L.O., Shaw, J. and Salmon, D.A. (2021) Mandatory SARS-CoV-2 vaccinations in K-12 schools, colleges/universities, and businesses. Journal of the American Medical Association 326(1): 25–26
Gur-Arie, R., Jamrozik, E. and Kingori, P. (2021) No jab, no job? Ethical issues in mandatory covid-19 vaccination of healthcare personnel. BMJ Global Health 6(2): e004877
Habighorst, K.R., Cillessen, L.M., Taylor, H.M., Reed, J.J. and Gubbins, P.O. (2022) Exploring strategies to increase college students’ motivation to receive their annual influenza vaccine. Journal of American College Health. https://doi.org/10.1080/07448481.2022.2032092
Haeder, S.F. (2021) Joining the herd? U.S. public opinion and vaccination requirements across educational settings during the COVID-19 pandemic. Vaccine 39(17): 2375–2385
Halloran, M.E. and Longini, I.M., Jr. (2006) Public health: Community studies for vaccinating schoolchildren against influenza. Science 311(5761): 615–616
Hodge, T.R., Orzach, R. and Silberman, J. (2022) Higher education decision on COVID-19 vaccine mandate. Applied Economics Letters 30(7): 932–936
Jacobson v. Commonwealth of Massachusetts. (1905) 197 U.S. 11
Jarry, J. (2020) The anti-vaccine movement in 2020. Office for Science and Society, 22 May, https://www.mcgill.ca/oss/article/covid-19-pseudoscience/anti-vaccine-movement-2020/ Accessed 27/07/2022
Kadkhoda, K. (2021) Herd immunity to COVID-19: Alluring and elusive. American Journal of Clinical Pathology 155(4): 471–472
Kecojevic, A., Basch, C.H., Sullivan, M., Chen, Y.-T. and Davi, N.K. (2021) COVID-19 vaccination and intention to vaccinate among a sample of college students in New Jersey. Journal of Community Health 46: 1059–1068
Khabbaz, R.F., Moseley, R.R., Steiner, R.J., Levitt, A.M. and Bell, B.P. (2014) Challenges of infectious diseases in the USA. Lancet 384(9937): 53–63
Kiel, et al. (2020) v. The Regents of the University of California, No. HG20072843 (Cal. Super. Ct. Dec. 4, 2020)
Klaassen, et al. (2021) v. Trustees of Indiana University, 7 F. 4th 592 (7th Cir. 2021)
Klein, B., Generous, N., Chinazzi, M., Bhadricha, Z., et al. (2022) Higher education responses to COVID-19 in the United States. Evidence for the impacts of university policy. PLOS Digital Health 1(6): 1–18
Kraska, P.B. and Neuman, W.L. (2011) Criminal justice and criminology research methods, 2nd edn, New York: Pearson.
Lipka, M. and Smith, G.A. (2019) Like Americans overall, U.S. Catholics are sharply divided by party. PEW Research, 24 January, https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2019/01/24/like-americans-overall-u-s-catholics-are-sharply-divided-by-party/ Accessed 27/07/2022
Long, J.S. (1997) Regression models for categorical and limited dependent variables, Thousand Oaks: SAGE Publications.
Malone, K.E. and Hinman, A.R. (2007) 'Vaccination mandates: The public health imperative and individual rights', in R.A. Goodman, R.E. Hoffman, W. Lopez, G.W. Matthews, M. Rothstein and K. Foster (eds.) Law and Public Health PracticeNew York: Oxford University Press.
Maricopa County Health Department v. Harmon. (1987) 750 P.2d 1364 (Ariz. Ct. App. 1987)
Mariner, W.K., Annas, G.J. and Glantz, J.D. (2005) Jacobson v. Massachusetts: It’s not your great-great-grandfather’s public health law. American Journal of Public Health 95(4): 581–589
Marsicano, C.R., Martin, R.C. and Owusu, S.M. (2023) Which leaders are you following?: Postsecondary institution vaccine policy influences and implications in Fall 2021. Journal of Education Human Resources 41(1): 74–109
Marsicano, C., Felten, K., Toledo, L., and Buitendorp, M. (2020). ‘Tracking campus responses to the COVID-19 pandemic’. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. Public Policy APSA Preprints version 1. https://doi.org/10.33774/apsa-2020-3wvrl.
Motta, M. (2021) Republicans, not Democrats, are more likely to endorse anti-vaccine misinformation. American Politics Research 49(5): 428–438. https://doi.org/10.1177/1532673X211022639
Mustapha, T., Khubchandani, J. and Biswas, N. (2021) COVID-19 vaccination hesitancy in students and trainees of healthcare professions: A global assessment and call for action. Brain, Behavior, and Immunity Health 16: 100289. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bbih.2021.100289
National Foundation on Infectious Diseases (2017) National survey on college students and flu. NFID report, 6 December, https://www.nfid.org/infectious-diseases/national-survey-on-college-students-flu/ 10/04/2022
National Academy for State Health Policy (2023). ‘States address school vaccine mandates’. NASHP update, 6 February, https://nashp.org/states-address-school-vaccine-mandates-and-mask-mandates/ Accessed 1/03/2022
Noesekabel, A. and Fenick, A.M. (2017) Immunization requirements of the top 200 universities: Implications for vaccine-hesitant families. Vaccine 35(29): 3661–3665
Omer, S.B., Benjamin, R.M., Brewer, N.T., Buttenheim, A.M., Callaghan, T., Caplan, A., ... and Hotez, P.J. (2021) ‘Promoting COVID-19 vaccine acceptance: recommendations from the Lancet Commission on Vaccine Refusal, Acceptance, and Demand in the USA’. Lancet 398(10317): 2186–2192
Persad, G. and Emanuel, E.J. (2021) Ethical considerations of offering benefits to COVID-19 vaccine recipients. Journal of the American Medical Association 326(3): 221–222
Randolph, H.E. and Barriero, L.B. (2020) Herd immunity: Understanding COVID-19. Immunity 52(5): 737–741. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.immuni.2020.04.012
Rebmann, T., Elliott, M.B., Swick, Z. and Reddick, D. (2013) U.S. school morbidity and mortality, mandatory vaccination, institution closure, and interventions implemented during 2009 influenza A H1N1 pandemic. Biosecurity and Bioterrorism: Biodefense Strategy, Practice, and Science 11(1): 41–48
Richards, T. and Nystrom, A. (2022) Examining faculty-to-student consensual sexual relationship policies on campus: Have there been changes in the era of #metoo. Journal of Interpersonal Violence 37(3–4): NP835–NP1859
Robertson, C., Scheitrum, D., Schaefer, A., Malone, T., McFadden, B.R., Messer, K.D. and Ferraro, P.J. (2021) ‘Paying Americans to take the vaccine—would it help or backfire’? Journal of Law and the Biosciences 8(2): 1–19
Roberts H.A., Clark D.A., Kalina C., Sherman C., Brislin S, Heitzeg M.M., et al. (2022) ‘To vax or not to vax: Predictors of anti-vax attitudes and COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy prior to widespread vaccine availability’. PLoS ONE 17(2): e0264019
Roche, L.R. (2021) Full FDA approval for COVID-19 vaccine end Utah ban on government-mandated shots. Deseret News https://www.deseret.com/utah/2021/8/23/22637985/full-approval-forcovid-19-vaccine-ends-utah-ban-government-mandated-shots-mandate-pandemic-pfizer. Accessed 01/08/2022
Salali, G.D. and Uysal, M.S. (2021) Effective incentives for increasing COVID-19 vaccine uptake. Psychological Medicine 20: 3242–3244
Schultes, O., Clarke, V., Paltiel, A.D., Cartter, M., Sosa, L. and Crawford, F.W. (2021) COVID-19 in Connecticut institutions of higher education during the 2020–2021 academic year. JAMA Network Open 4(12): e2140602. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2021.40602
Schwartz, R.D. and Bayles, B.R. (2012) U.S. university response to H1N1: A study of access to online preparedness and response information. American Journal of Infection Control 40(2): 170–174
Seltzer, R. (2021) Colleges roll back employee vaccine requirements after injunction blocks federal contractor requirements. Higher Ed Dive. 8 December https://www.highereddive.com/news/colleges-roll-back-employee-vaccine-requirements-after-injunction-blocks-fe/611219/. Accessed 03/08/2022
Shapiro, A., Marinsek, N., Clay, I., Bradshaw, B., Ramirez, E., Min, J., et al. (2021) Characterizing COVID-19 and influenza illnesses in the real world via person-generated health data. Patterns 2(1): 100188
Sharma, M., Davis, R.E. and Wilkerson, A.H. (2021) COVID-19 vaccine acceptance among college students: A theory-based analysis. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 18(9): 4617–4629
Silva, J., Bratberg, J. and Lemay, V. (2021) COVID-19 and influenza vaccine hesitancy among college students. Journal of American Pharmacists 61(7): 09–714. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.japh.2021.05.009
Singson, J.R., Kirley, P.D., Pham, H., et al. (2022) Factors associated with severe outcomes among immunocompromised adults hospitalized for COVID-19 — COVID-NET, 10 States, March 2020–February 2022. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report 71: 878–884
Texas State Law Library. (2023) ‘COVID-19 & Texas Law. Texas State Law Library’, 31 May, https://guides.sll.texas.gov/covid-19/vaccine-laws, Accessed 31/05/2023
The White House. (2021) ‘Executive order on requiring Coronavirus disease 2019 vaccination for federal employees’. The White House Brief, 9 September, https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/presidential-actions/2021/09/09/executive-order-on-requiring-coronavirus-disease-2019-vaccination-for-federal-employees/ Accessed 1/12/2021
Thirumurthy, H., Milkman, K.L., Volpp, K., Buttenheim, A., and Pope, D.G. (2021). ‘Association between statewide financial incentive programs and COVID-19 vaccination rates’, SSRN. 1-6. http://dx.doi.org/https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.3912786
Thomas, K. and Darling, J. (2021) Education is now a bigger factor than race in desire for a COVID-19 vaccine. Leonard Schaeffer Center for Health Policy and Economics, 2 March, https://healthpolicy.usc.edu/evidence-base/education-is-now-a-bigger-factor-than-race-in-desire-for-covid-19-vaccine/ Accessed 27/07/2022
Thomason, A. and O’Leary, B. (2022) Here's a list of colleges that require students or employees to be vaccinated against COVID -19. The Chronicle of Higher Education. 26 October, https://www.chronicle.com/blogs/live-coronavirus-updates/heres-a-list-of-colleges-that-will-require-students-to-be-vaccinated-against-covid-19/ Accessed 27/07/2022
Troiano, G. and Nardi, A. (2021) Vaccine hesitancy in the era of COVID-19. Public Health 194: 245–251
United States Food and Drug Administration. (2021) FDA issues emergency use authorization for third COVID-19 vaccine. FDA news release, 27 February, https://www.fda.gov/news-events/press-announcements/fda-issues-emergency-use-authorization-third-covid-19-vaccine/ Accessed 1/12/2021
United States Federal Food and Drug Administration. (2020a). FDA takes additional action in fight against COVID-19 by issuing emergency use uuthorization for second COVID-19 vaccine. FDA news release, 18 December, https://www.fda.gov/news-events/press-announcements/fda-takes-additional-action-fight-against-covid-19-issuing-emergency-use-authorization-second-covid/ Accessed 1/12/2021
United States Federal Food and Drug Administration. (2020b) FDA takes key action in fight against COVID-19 by issuing emergency use authorization for first COVID-19 vaccine. FDA news report, 11 December, https://www.fda.gov/news-events/press-announcements/fda-takes-key-action-fight-against-covid-19-issuing-emergency-use-authorization-first-covid-19/ Accessed 01/12/2021
Volpp, K.G. and Cannuscio, C.C. (2021) Incentives for immunity—Strategies for increasing Covid-19 vaccine uptake. New England Journal of Medicine 385(1): e1(1)-3
Yamin, D. and Gavious, A. (2013) Incentives’ effect in influenza vaccination policy. Management Science 59(12): 2667–2686
Zucht v., King. (1922) 260 U.S. 174
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Ethics declarations
Conflict of interest
On behalf of all authors, the corresponding author states that there is no conflict of interest.
Additional information
Publisher's Note
Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
Rights and permissions
Springer Nature or its licensor (e.g. a society or other partner) holds exclusive rights to this article under a publishing agreement with the author(s) or other rightsholder(s); author self-archiving of the accepted manuscript version of this article is solely governed by the terms of such publishing agreement and applicable law.
About this article
Cite this article
Garland, T.S., McGuffee, K., Ford, D. et al. Politicizing Vaccination Requirements: American University Responses in the Era of COVID-19. High Educ Policy (2023). https://doi.org/10.1057/s41307-023-00319-y
Published:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/s41307-023-00319-y