President Donald Trump has signed an executive order halting federal funding for colleges and universities that continue to mandate the COVID-19 vaccine in 2025. The order is part of a series of executive actions Trump has taken in the early weeks of his second term, moving swiftly to fulfill key campaign promises.
According to Fox News, the directive explicitly prevents federal funds from being used to “support or subsidize an educational service agency, state education agency, local education agency, elementary school, secondary school, or institution of higher education that requires students to have received a COVID-19 vaccination to attend in-person education programs.”
BREAKING: President Donald Trump signs as has cut all federal funding to schools that mandate the COVID vaccine.pic.twitter.com/F0DZHLWztQ
— Resist Times (@resistupdates) February 14, 2025
The executive order not only cuts off funding to institutions that maintain vaccine mandates but also directs the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Department of Education to take further action against COVID-19 vaccine requirements.
Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who was recently appointed by Trump to lead HHS, has been tasked with developing a plan to end what the administration refers to as “coercive COVID-19 vaccine mandates.” The yet-to-be-confirmed Secretary of Education will also be involved in crafting guidelines for schools regarding vaccine policies.
Kennedy’s appointment to HHS has been controversial, given his history of vaccine skepticism. However, his role in shaping policy on this issue aligns with Trump’s broader efforts to dismantle pandemic-era regulations, which he argues have outlived their necessity.
The administration has framed the new order as a move to protect personal freedom and prevent government overreach into medical decisions.
This is not the first executive action Trump has taken against COVID-19 vaccine mandates since returning to office. In late January, he signed another order reversing the dismissal of military personnel who were discharged for refusing the vaccine under former President Joe Biden’s administration.
Trump’s executive order on the military stated that all service members—both active and reserve—who were let go solely for refusing the COVID-19 vaccine must be given the option to be reinstated.
It also required that those who choose to return to service receive full backpay for the time they were out. The former policy, Trump argued, was “unfair, overbroad, and [a] completely unnecessary burden” on the military.
The reinstatement policy was met with praise from some military advocacy groups and conservative lawmakers who had opposed vaccine mandates for service members. However, others have expressed concerns about the logistical and administrative challenges of bringing back dismissed personnel.
It remains unclear how many educational institutions will be affected by the executive order. By the spring of 2024, no U.S. state had an active requirement for students to receive the COVID-19 vaccine in order to attend school.
Many universities had already dropped their mandates as public concern over COVID-19 declined. However, some private institutions and specific programs, particularly in medical and healthcare-related fields, continued to enforce vaccine requirements.