'Ornery' Vaccine Holdouts Should Pay the Price

More than half the US population has gotten at least one shot of a COVID vaccine, and the US just eclipsed the 200 million mark on total shots administered. All of which is good news to columnist Jennifer Rubin of the Washington Post. At some point, "only the willfully ignorant and destructive will remain unvaccinated," she writes. "Once that happens, employers, retail establishments, entertainment venues, public buildings, public transportation, colleges and (when vaccines are approved for children) K-12 schools should insist that people present a secure form of proof of vaccination before entering."

Polls consistently show that about 20% of Americans don't intend to get a shot, and Rubin predicts this "reckless" camp will complain about their freedom being infringed if proof of vaccination is required by businesses and the like. "Nonsense," she writes. Schools require vaccinations for other diseases, and stores demand that people wear shoes and shirts. All kinds of restrictions like this already exist. "The ornery holdouts won’t be mandated by the government to get shots, but they should not be able to enjoy the benefits, privileges and access that responsible Americans have earned by getting vaccinated." Read the full column. (More coronavirus vaccine stories.)