Kansas State announced in a virtual town hall Friday morning that all staff, faculty and student workers will be required to get the COVID-19 vaccine by Dec. 8 as part of the federal COVID-19 vaccine mandate issued by President Joe Biden earlier in September.
A special edition of K-State Today released Friday afternoon provided more details about the vaccine mandate.
The Kansas Board of Regents stated that K-State, the University of Kansas and Wichita State fall under federal guidelines requiring vaccines for Kansas research universities and their employees.
Employees may request medical or religious exemptions to the mandate by filling out the required forms. Based on the mandate, the COVID-19 vaccine is a condition of working, and employees who are not vaccinated or issued exemptions may be unable to work after the Dec. 8 deadline.
Those who received the vaccine through Lafene Health Center do not need to submit proof of vaccination, and those vaccinated elsewhere can submit proof of vaccination through the myLafene+ patient portal.
Vaccination options include the two-dose Moderna or Pfizer vaccines or the one-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine. Vaccines are free and available through Lafene, local health departments, local pharmacies or private physicians.
More information about the mandate, including a list of frequently asked questions, is available on the K-State COVID-19 Update website.