The Los Angeles School District, the second-largest school district in the United States, on Thursday mandated that students 12 years of age and older must receive a COVID-19 vaccine if they wish to attend public school.

The total number of students in this educational district is 600,000, of whom 220,000 are aged 12 years and over.

The school district made its decision based on a vote of its officials, becoming the first school district in the United States to make such a decision on such a large scale.

This decision came at a time when President Joe Biden announced a massive plan to re-launch the vaccination campaign in the country, which stipulates that the employees of the largest companies in the country, numbering about 100 million, receive the vaccine or show a negative result on a weekly basis the least.

The wearing of masks in Los Angeles County is mandatory in public places both indoors and outdoors.

The Los Angeles School District has previously required teachers and staff in district schools to receive a vaccine. 

The resolution, voted unanimously by the six members of the district's board of directors, states that all students over the age of 12 must have received the first dose of the vaccine by Nov. 21 and the second dose by Dec. 19 at the latest.

Under the decision, a child who will reach 12 years old - the minimum age in the United States to receive a vaccine against Covid-19, will have 30 days to receive the first dose of the vaccine.

Following the vote, District Head Kelly Gomez said in a tweet on Twitter that "the vaccine is safe and effective, and is the best way to protect our students from the virus."

This decision was supported by teachers' unions and many parents, but it faces fierce opposition from a minority who doubt the usefulness of vaccination despite scientific evidence of its effectiveness in preventing severe forms of the disease.

According to Los Angeles health officials, about 58 percent of 12- to 18-year-olds in the county have so far received at least one dose of the vaccine.