California Governor Gavin Newsom had announced on Friday a COVID vaccine mandate for schoolchildren in the state, making California the first state to have such requirements across the nation.

The governor tweeted that the requirement will go into effect following the Food and Drug Administration's approval, citing that schools already require vaccines for measles and mumps, among others, according to an NBC News report.

The federal government has fully approved the COVID vaccine for ages 16 and over while vaccines for anyone 12 to 15 were granted an emergency authorization.

Once FDA gives its full approval of the vaccine for the younger age group, the state will mandate students in 7th through 12th grades to get vaccinated in public and private schools.

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California COVID Vaccine Requirement

The state of California will allow certain exemptions for medical reasons, religious, and personal beliefs, with its rules being written after the state hears the comments from the public.

Meanwhile, schoolchildren without any exemption who refuses to comply with the mandate will be forced to do independent study at home, according to an Associated Press News report.

Vaccines for children five to 11 are still in the testing phase.

The state's vaccine rate is one of the highest in the country, with 84 percent of people 12 and older have gotten at least one dose of their vaccine, while 70 percent of the population are already vaccinated.

However, the vaccine mandate in the state has been met with opposition as more than a thousand people gathered at the state Capitol to protest against the vaccine requirement.

Fabio Zamora, who has a kid at Edna Brewer Middle School, said that he thinks it's a parent's decision.

Zamora added that the government is in no shape or form to be having mandates such as that, noting that he is a veteran and has served the country. He said that he fought for those rights.

Meanwhile, California's largest teachers' unions support the vaccine mandate. The California Association of School Boards expressed the same support.

COVID in California

The nation's largest county, Los Angeles County, has just 1.7 percent positive result among all the people tested. Its daily infections decreased by half last month.

Health Director Barbara Ferrer said that the numbers are low given that more than 3,000 schools are now open countywide.

Five school districts in California have implemented their own vaccine requirements, including Los Angeles.

The vaccine mandates are set to take effect in January.

Dr. Peter N. Bretan, president of the California Medical Association, backs up the governor's decision, according to an NPR report.

Bretan said that this is not a new idea as vaccines were already required against other deadly diseases before students can enroll in schools.

The physician noted that the Newsom administration is simply extending public health protections to cover the new disease.

California also has the lowest COVID case rate in the country, with some regions continuing to see a surge in hospitalizations, according to The Guardian report.

Those areas seeing a surge as particularly those where resistance against vaccines and public health mandates are rampant.

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Written by: Mary Webber

WATCH: Vaccine mandate: California to require eligible students to get COVID vaccine, Newsom says - from ABC7