Recently, the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals denied injunctive relief in a challenge to Indiana University’s mandate that all students be vaccinated against COVID-19 prior to the start of the fall semester unless the student has a medical or religious exemption. Klaasen v. Indiana University.
Following adoption of the vaccination mandate, eight students filed suit against the university, claiming the policy violated their due process rights under the 14th Amendment. The district court denied the students’ request for injunctive relief, and the Seventh Circuit agreed, finding no basis for an injunction. The Seventh Circuit found support for IU’s vaccination mandate in a U.S. Supreme Court case finding constitutional a state requirement that all residents be vaccinated against small pox. The Seventh Circuit also found no constitutional violation where students who claimed a medical or religious exemption would have to wear masks and be regularly tested. Finally, the Court noted that the students were not required to attend IU and if they objected to the vaccination requirement, they could simply attend another school. In short, the Seventh Circuit found no constitutional violation in IU’s vaccination mandate to support injunctive relief against the university.
