Eric Adams vows to mandate COVID vaccines for New York children under 12, pending FDA approval

ON WCBS 880's Lynda Lopez, the mayoral hopeful, believes vaccine mandates are necessary to ensure the health and safety of all residents. "This is a city and country where we do vaccinate. I was vaccinated for smallpox, mumps, measles, and so many others. We already have a system in place that states before you start school, you receive your vaccination," said Adams.

He claims the mandate "is to protect the child and the student population." Adams' comments came after Mayor Bill de Blasio chose not to mandate COVID vaccines for school kids under 12 once they're approved.

"The issue that's been raised so many times is, should there be a mandate for a child to be able to go to our schools. And I feel very strongly, our health care team feels strongly, our Chancellor Meisha Ross Porter feels very strongly our kids need to be in school," de Blasio told WNYC on Friday. "So, I've said I'm not ready, nor is the Chancellor to exclude children who are unvaccinated because their parents won't let them be vaccinated. That's the reality. The child doesn't get to decide. The parents have to give consent."

The mayor noted that 75 percent of teenagers in the city are vaccinated and believes younger children "will be even a higher percentage ultimately." He added: "But I'm not going to, certainly not at this point. I'm not going to say a child can't come to school if they're unvaccinated because they've been excluded from education for too long."

In his interview, Adams committed to a sit-down with NYPD and FDNY union leaders to issue a vaccine mandate for both departments and schools. "I believe there's a way to work this out where we all will see the importance of having our first line workers being vaccinated," he said.