Sen. Corman says Penn State would likely face ‘pushback in Harrisburg’ if it mandated COVID vaccines

• Anne Danahy/WPSU
  BioRecent Stories

  

  Anne Danahy is a reporter at WPSU. She was a reporter for nearly 12 years at the Centre Daily Times in State College, Pennsylvania, where she earned a number of awards for her coverage of issues including the impact of natural gas development on communities.
  
  She earned a bachelor's degree in communications from Antioch College in Yellow Springs, Ohio, and a master's degree in media studies from Penn State.
  
  Before joining WPSU, she worked as a writer and editor at Strategic Communications at Penn State and with the Earth and Environmental Systems Institute before that.
  
  She hosts a Q&A program for Centre County's government and education access station and teaches a news writing and reporting class at Penn State.

 Matt Rourke / AP Photo

Pennsylvania Senate Majority Leader Jake Corman, R-Centre, in the Senate chambers before John Fetterman is sworn in as Pennsylvania Lieutenant Governor on Tuesday, Jan. 15, 2019, at the state Capitol in Harrisburg, Pa.

(State College) — State Senate President Pro Tempore Jake Corman said he supports how Penn State has been responding to COVID-19, and while he would not want to pull the university’s state funding if it mandated vaccines, others in the General Assembly might.

“I don’t see how pulling their funding and punishing students because I don’t like something Penn State may or may not be doing is a good move,” Corman said. “So I’ve never taken that approach, personally. It doesn’t mean others would not.”

In a letter to the community explaining the university’s COVID-19 response, Penn State President Eric Barron noted that for the university to get state funding, it needs a two-thirds vote of the state legislature.

Corman, a Republican whose district includes Penn State, said he understands the university taking that into consideration.

Penn State is a state-related university. About 11% of its general funds budget comes from the state. That supports the cost of tuition for in-state students, who pay less than out-of-state students.

Corman said private enterprises have the right to do what they want when it comes to COVID-19 vaccines. But, public institutions have a different mandate, and Penn State and the other state-relateds are in the middle.

He said if Penn State does move to mandating vaccines, the university will need to figure out a way to accommodate students who do not get vaccinated.

“They’ve always taken the position that they were not going down this road,” Corman said. “So, I’ve never had a concern about it, because they always told me they weren’t going to do it. But, if they did, I’m sure there would be some pushback in Harrisburg.”

Republicans control both the state House and Senate.

Sometimes, your mornings are just too busy to catch the news beyond a headline or two. Don’t worry. The Morning Agenda has got your back. Each weekday morning, host Tim Lambert will keep you informed, amused, enlightened and up-to-date on what’s happening in central Pennsylvania and the rest of this great commonwealth.

Learn More