https://www.mercurynews.com/2021/08/26/doctor-challenges-uc-systems-vaccine-mandate-saying-he-is-naturally-immune-to-covid-19/ or ungated: https://archive.is/5QZB7
>A UCI School of Medicine physician who contracted COVID-19 in 2020 alleges in a lawsuit he should be exempt from the university’s vaccine mandate because he has a “natural immunity” to the virus.
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>Dr. Aaron Kheriaty, a professor of psychiatry and human behavior at the UCI medical school, filed the suit last week in U.S. District Court against the University of California Board of Regents and Michael V. Drake, the system’s president. He is seeking an injunction to block the mandate, allowing him to return to work unvaccinated, and is asking the court to declare the policy unconstitutional.
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>“This policy is illogical and cannot withstand strict scrutiny or even a rational basis test because naturally immune individuals, like plaintiff, have at least as good or better immunity to the virus that causes COVID-19 than do individuals who are vaccinated,” the suit states.
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>Kheriaty has been a vocal opponent of the UC system’s vaccine mandate and has penned several opinion articles on the topic for the Wall Street Journal and other publications.
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>“Forcing those with natural immunity to be vaccinated introduces unnecessary risks without commensurate benefits — either to individuals or the population as a whole — and violates their rights guaranteed under the equal protection clause of the Constitution’s 14th Amendment,” he said Wednesday.
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>The lawsuit alleges that treating naturally immune individuals differently from the fully vaccinated, when both have immunity, is unconstitutional.
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>UCI School of Medicine officials referred questions about the suit to Drake’s office, which did not respond to emails and phone calls seeking comment.
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>The UC system adopted a policy in July, requiring with few exceptions, all students, faculty and staff to be vaccinated against the COVID-19 virus before being allowed on campus, in a facility or an office. Individuals will be required to show proof of vaccination.
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>“Employees who choo
All but the top 3 UCs have a Transfer Admission Guaranteed program that promises you admission if you meet certain qualifications. Basically you must have 60 semester credits (AP exam credits count!) including 30 UC transferable credits from California community colleges, and you must take all the GE and prerequisites required for your major with a minimum GPA of about a 3.4 (as low as 2.9 for some majors at Riverside/Merced). For more detailed info:
https://admission.universityofcalifornia.edu/admission-requirements/transfer-requirements/uc-transfer-programs/transfer-admission-guarantee-tag.html
If you have a bunch of AP or dual enrollment CC credits, with careful planning, it’s totally possible to do a 1-year transfer. But for TAG, you need to take at least 1 summer CCC class, have your courses planned out and apply for TAG your first month of school. Process described in detail here is basically the same if you want to take 2-3 years to transfer. https://ca01001129.schoolwires.net/cms/lib/CA01001129/Centricity/Domain/441/UC_oneyeartransfer.pdf
So if you don’t get into a school you love, you can choose the UC as a fallback option and know you are GUARANTEED admission to one of these outstanding universities if you plan classes carefully and work hard at a California community college. It does mean a delay in starting your “traditional college experience” but you’ll also potentially save a lot on 2 years of tuition so you’ll miss out on some of the “college loan repayment experience” too. And if you really want to move away and live in apartment with friends, schools like Santa Barbara City College are located near neighborhoods with a lot of student apartments.
Of course there are limitations, and you should check carefully before committing to this. Every campus has specific rules; Davis wants to see you were taking CC classes the spring before you apply for TAG, for example. And because of high demand, you can only TAG as a CS major at UCR and UCM. Other popular programs like business at UCI also don’t have enough spots to offer guaranteed admission. But you can apply for other programs alongside your TAG, and transfer admission percentages at all UCs are higher than for freshmen; for example over half of transfer applicants are accepted to UCSD (which has no TAG). https://www.universityofcalifornia.edu/infocenter/transfers-major
You can boost your chances at getting into UCLA or get guaranteed admission to UCI by participating in honors program
... keep reading on reddit ➡Aaron Kheriaty is both a psychiatrist and a medical ethicist, which puts him in a position to answer some of the most interesting questions surrounding the pandemic. We’re very excited to have him join us.
An Associate Professor of Psychiatry and Director of the Program in Medical Ethics at the University of California Irvine School of Medicine, Dr. Kheriaty also serves as chairman of the clinical ethics committee at UCI Medical Center. And how’s this for a cool resume item: Program Director & Senior Fellow, Program in Health & Human Flourishing.
In addition to articles in peer reviewed journals, Dr. Kheriaty has seen his work published in mainstream outlets such as the Wall Street Journal and the Washington Post. He has conducted interviews on bioethics topics with The New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, CNN, NPR, and Fox, among others.
Having co-authored his university’s ventilator triage guidelines, Dr. Kheriaty is no stranger to the physical realities of Covid. At the same time, he has expressed concerns about the mental-health fallout of lockdowns, which he addresses here and here.
Dr. Kheriaty recently made headlines by suing his university over its vaccine mandate, which he argued should not apply to people who have natural immunity against Covid-19, as he does. “If I don't try to do what is morally right when under pressure or when it might cost me something professionally, then I don't have much credibility in terms of calling myself a medical ethicist," he told Medpage Today in a recent interview. In this WSJ op-ed he argues that university vaccine mandates go against medical ethics.
As always, we encourage you to attend this event and contribute to the discussion. If you’re unable to attend in real time, please ask your questions in this thread and we’ll pass them on to Dr. Kheriaty. Feel free to ask multiple questions: the more the merrier.
Save the date: September 17, 2 pm EDT, 11 am PDT, 7 pm UK time, 8 pm EU time.
