Students planning to live on campus during the spring 2022 semester at any school within the University System of Maryland (USM) must get a COVID-19 vaccine booster shot unless they have been exempted from the vaccination mandate, the university system announced Friday.
Individual institutions will set their own deadlines for receiving a booster shot and procedures for students to verify their vaccination status, according to USM officials.
The university system “strongly encourages” eligible students, faculty and staff to get a booster shot, which “provides optimal protection against COVID,” officials said.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has reported that the Omicron variant of COVID-19 is likely to be more transmissible than the original strain of the virus.
While breakthrough cases are possible in people who have been vaccinated and received a booster shot, inoculation against COVID-19 remains an important strategy for reducing the risk of infection, severe symptoms, and death, according to health officials.
The USM said the booster requirement aims to reduce the spread of COVID-19 on campuses, particularly in student dormitories and other congregate housing facilities, where risk of infection is higher.
“We recognize that individuals in congregate housing are at the greatest risk for contracting the coronavirus, particularly the highly transmissible Omicron variant,” USM officials said in a statement. “We recognize, as well, the enormous operational challenges posed to our institutions should they have to isolate, quarantine, and care for large numbers of students in the event of an outbreak in campus housing.”
