Should The Massachusetts Flu Vaccine Requirement For Students Also Apply To Teachers?

BOSTON (CBS) --  The Department of Public Health is reportedly under pressure to extend the state's flu vaccine mandate to teachers. All children 6 months or older attending Massachusetts child care, K-12 schools and colleges will be required to get a flu vaccine before the end of the year.

And according to The Boston Herald, some medical experts are now pushing for the state to mandate that teachers be vaccinated as well. PhysicianOne Urgent Care chief medical officer Jeannie Kenkare told the newspaper "it just seems like common sense" for teachers to get one.

The department said in response to The Herald that state law allows them to make school vaccination requirements for students, but not for anyone else.

The flu vaccine mandate for Massachusetts, the first of its kind in the country, has been the subject of protests. The state says it's an important part of keeping hospitalizations low amid the coronavirus pandemic, but some parents call it government overreach.

WBZ-TV's Dr. Mallika Marshall says the flu vaccine is "incredibly safe."