Effective June 1, 2023, Brown will no longer require the COVID-19 vaccination for faculty, staff, students or visitors. However, we strongly recommend that individuals obtain the primary vaccine series and stay updated with bivalent COVID-19 vaccine boosters. Staying up to date with boosters is particularly important for individuals over the age of 65 and those who may be moderately or severely immunocompromised, though all ages can benefit from the protections boosters provide. Brown will continue to support students in accessing vaccinations, including through our free vaccine clinics on campus.

In making the decision to end the vaccination requirement, Brown joins its peer colleges and universities in relying on expert guidance. Public health experts have determined that locally and nationally, populations have achieved high rates of immunity and low levels of transmission due to both vaccine-based immunity and previous exposure to COVID-19. The protection offered by the original COVID-19 vaccine series has diminished over time along with the emergence of new variants. Schedules for the bivalent booster now are tailored to each individual's healthcare needs. Because everyone's health situation is different — based on a combination of past exposure and their booster schedule — a policy of universal vaccination no longer offers the same benefits it did early in the pandemic.

This change in vaccination requirements aligns with guidance from the CDC and the Rhode Island Department of Health (RIDOH), and follows President Biden’s signing of legislation on April 10, 2023, to end the national emergency for COVID-19. The World Health Organization likewise at its May 4, 2023, meeting issued a statement determining that COVID-19 “no longer constitutes a public health emergency of international concern."

Warren Alpert Medical School Requirements

Please note that the initial vaccine series and booster will continue to be required for Warren Alpert Medical School, Gateways, and Program in Liberal Medical Education (PLME) students prior to their matriculation at the medical school, as these groups spend a significant amount of time in clinical settings where full vaccination continues to be required.  

The Brown community’s compliance with the University’s COVID-19 vaccination and booster requirements have proven essential to maintaining in-person academic and administrative activities on campus in recent semesters. Through May 31, 2023, the requirement that all employees and students remain up to date with their COVID-19 vaccinations remains in place.

Per the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, you are up to date with your COVID-19 vaccines if you have completed a COVID-19 vaccine primary series and received the most recent booster dose recommended for you by the CDC.

Employees

In order to provide and maintain a safe work environment, Brown requires up-to-date COVID-19 vaccines for all employees — faculty, staff, postdoctoral scholars, visiting researchers, lecturers, and seasonal and intermittent staff — working at any Brown-owned, leased or managed premises and/or engaging in any in-person work with other Brown employees, students or visitors. All employees must:

• Provide proof they have received a full course of a U.S. Food and Drug Administration or World Health Organization authorized COVID-19 vaccine; and provide proof they received a COVID-19 booster dose within 30 days of becoming eligible.
• Or obtain a medical or religious exemption approved by Brown with a reasonable accommodation.

Students

Brown requires all students who will be on campus or engage in any level of in-person instruction, whether in the U.S. or abroad, and all Brown students who are engaged in on-campus activities (education, jobs, research, or engaging in any in-person education or work with other Brown employees, students or visitors) to be up to date with COVID-19 vaccines.  All students must:

• Provide proof they have received a full course of a U.S. Food and Drug Administration or World Health Organization authorized COVID-19 vaccine; and provide proof they received a COVID-19 booster dose within 30 days of becoming eligible.
• Or obtain a medical or religious exemption. Medical and religious exemptions will be granted and reasonable accommodations provided under applicable law.

Students who are not vaccinated and do not qualify for a medical or religious exemption will be required to study remotely without permission to access campus. Information about requesting exemptions is provided to students from University Health Services.

Visitors

Visitors and guests are allowed on campus without specific approvals or permissions, subject to the following provisions and expectations:

Visitor and Guest Vaccine Requirement: Visitors to Brown, whether researchers, faculty, students or others, who are engaged in any sustained and consistent in-person contact with other Brown employees, students or visitors are required to be up to date with COVID-19 Vaccines. Any visitor of this type who is not up to date must engage with the University virtually. Exemptions for medical or religious grounds do not apply to visitors to the University. However, if the visitor is an individual with a disability, the individual may seek a reasonable accommodation.

Categories of Visitors: Given the range of types and lengths of visits to the campus, the implementation of the vaccination requirement may vary across programs. In general, visitors fall into three categories:

1. long-term (usually a semester or more although sometimes for shorter periods of time and with an appointment in Workday): Required to upload documentation of Up to Date COVID-19 Vaccines into Workday prior to beginning work at Brown;
2. short-term (four full days over the course of a month or more, but without an appointment in Workday): Required to sign a University vaccination attestation form that they are Up to Date with COVID-19 Vaccines;
3. limited-duration (visits of three days per month or less): not required to sign a vaccination form; and they must abide by the COVID-19 Campus Safety Policy and any requirements specific to the facility or program they are visiting (e.g., health care or medical research settings with indoor mask requirements).

Campus Tours: Participants on campus tours conducted by the Office of College Admission are limited-duration visitors.

Employees

All employees who have received an approved COVID-19 vaccination and FDA-approved booster against COVID-19 should provide verification of receipt by uploading the completed vaccination card with your booster record received from your vaccination provider. Please submit your updated vaccine record with your booster directly through Workday:

• Booster Management in Workday: https://brown.edu/go/employeeboosters
• Vaccine Management in Workday: http://brown.edu/go/vaccine-manage

Important: If you loaded your booster record prior to December 20, 2021, please reload per the instructions above.

For more information regarding uploading your vaccination card to Workday, please visit this online guide. If you cannot upload your card in Workday, please share a copy of your completed vaccination card with your booster via email as a pdf or jpeg to employeetestinguhr@brown.edu. If submitting via email, please use Virtru to email it securely.

All vaccination records will be stored confidentially in Workday and can be loaded via the Vaccine Management link in the Benefits app on your Workday landing page.

Students

Once you receive a vaccination shot at any stage — whether your initial shot, the second dose of a two-dose vaccination series (i.e., Pfizer or Moderna), or a booster — please upload a copy of your documentation to the it to the Health and Wellness Patient Portal as detailed here:

1. Log in to the Health and Wellness Patient Portal using your Brown username and password.
2. Select “Immunizations” at the top of the page and select “Enter Dates.”
3. Scroll down to the “Other” section and choose the appropriate COVID-19 vaccine.
4. Select the calendar icon to select the date(s) on which you were vaccinated and then select “Submit.”
5. Select “Upload” from the dropdown menu and select “Immunization Records Other.”
6. Choose “Select File,” upload your vaccine card photo, and select “Upload.”

All vaccination records will be stored confidentially.

While staying up to date with your COVID-19 vaccines is an important public health measure, it does not replace the essentials of mask wearing, hand washing, social distancing as needed and staying home when sick.

Developing immunity through vaccination means there is a reduced risk of developing the illness and its consequences. This immunity helps you fight the virus if exposed. Getting vaccinated may also protect people around you, because if you are protected from getting infected and from disease, you are less likely to infect someone else. This is particularly important to protect people at increased risk for severe illness from COVID-19, including individuals who are immunocompromised and for whom the vaccine does not offer full protection.

For all of those reasons, members of the Brown community members must continue to follow any and all COVID-19 health protocols that are in place at a given time.