Hochul says she’ll hold judgement on possible vaccine mandate for schools
FILE - New York governor Kathy Hochul and Irish prime minister Micheal Martin talk to reporters after their meeting in New York, Monday, Sept. 20, 2021. After being vaulted into the New York governor's office two months ago, Democrat Kathy Hochul is preparing to run for the job in her own right next year. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)[AP ]
COVID-19 vaccines for children could get approval within a few weeks, and Gov. Kathy Hochul is already preparing for what the vaccine rollout could look like in New York.
NewsChannel 13 caught up with the governor at a Democratic rally in Colonie this weekend, and asked her about her plans.
"I’m going to empower the parents immediately to do what I know they know is best for their kids. That’s why we are working to get the vaccines in schools and in clinics," the governor said. "I just had a call with all the pediatric associations and practitioners to let them know we want them in their offices."
NewsChannel 13 also asked the governor about if she’s considering implementing a vaccine mandate in schools.
"I will hold judgement on that very question right now," she said. "I want to make sure everyone does the right thing. They have the tools they need, they have the vaccines, but if it turns out that we see an increase in cases and people aren’t compliant…I’m going to keep all options on the table for sure."
The FDA is set to discuss Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine for children between the ages of 5-11 next week.