The Supreme Court declined to block a COVID-19 vaccine policy at Indiana University, the first mandate challenge of the coronavirus era. Associate Justice Amy Coney Barrett rejected the request from Indiana University students to hear a challenge to the vaccine mandate, clearing the way for school officials to require students and faculty members to be vaccinated. Indiana’s public university said in May that students and faculty would be required to take the vaccine to attend classes in person this fall, with exceptions for religious objections, medical conditions and those conducting their coursework online. The emergency appeal arrived at the nation's highest court as a growing number of employers, restaurants and schools, responding to a rise in COVID-19 cases driven by the Delta variant, are requiring vaccines. #vaccines #covid19 #heatlh