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Network for Public Health Law
Preventing and Treating Communicable Conditions

Let Them Choose v. San Diego Unified School District

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Overview

Let Them Choose v. San Diego Unified School District (Cal. Ct. App., Nov. 22, 2022): A California appellate court invalidated San Diego Unified School District’s COVID-19 vaccination requirement for students 16 and older to attend school in-person and participate in extracurricular activities. The court held the requirement was preempted because it contradicted state law in a legal area already regulated by the state. Under California law, schools “shall not unconditionally admit” students who have not been vaccinated against 10 listed diseases (excluding COVID-19). The court considered this a “negative-but-necessary implication” that schools must admit students who have been vaccinated against the listed diseases without adding additional vaccination mandates. Further, the extensive scope of the relevant laws—including the process under which additional diseases could be added to the enumerated list—clearly indicated the state’s intention to act as the sole regulatory authority on student vaccinations. Read the full decision here.

View all cases in the Judicial Trends in Public Health – February 15, 2023.

View all cases under “Preventing and Treating Communicable Conditions.”