EWU COVID Guideline FAQs

On May 25, 2021, EWU published updated COVID-19 guidelines.  In response to questions and concerns raised by the campus community, we are providing the additional information below.

Catalyst Building:  The updated requirements apply to the Catalyst building.  An EWU employee who is fully vaccinated and has uploaded their vaccination records to Med+Proctor does not need to wear a mask or social distance in the Catalyst.

EWU Spokane:  EWU students and employees must continue to follow the requirements of Washington State University for operations on the WSU Spokane Campus.

HIPAA and Employees:  Health information that is collected by an employer for employment purposes is not subject to HIPAA.  More information about how HIPAA applies at EWU can be found in EWU Policy 401-05, Protected Health Information.

HIPAA, FERPA, and Students: Student health information, including vaccination records, that are maintained by EWU are not subject to HIPAA because they are considered to be education records that are covered under FERPA.  Additional information may be found in this Department of Education guidance: https://www2.ed.gov/policy/gen/guid/fpco/ferpa/library/alhippaa.html

Vaccination Proof:  Employees and students are being asked to upload their vaccination record to Med+Proctor.  Within 24-48 hours after you upload your documents, you should be able to log back in to Med+Proctor and obtain a “Vaccine Passport”.  Instructions for uploading records can be found at https://inside.ewu.edu/bewell/immunization/.  Please note, you do not need to pay $10 to submit your record; it is a free service, although the system will prompt you for optional payment features.

Students and Visitors:  These requirements for students and visitors will remain the same until after graduation (June 12).

  • Distancing – When campus offices open to the public, we want to keep all students and visitors 6’ apart as we will not know whether or not they have been vaccinated.  Departments should keep distancing markers in place.
  • Masks – Beginning June 14, students and visitors will not be required to wear a mask if they are fully vaccinated. We will likely be updating signs on the buildings to something such as “unvaccinated individuals must wear a mask.”  Departments may add that kind of language to their area as well.

Verification:  At this time, we are using the ‘honor system’.

Incentives:  EWU is putting together some vaccination incentives for students and employees.  Students and employees who upload their COVID vaccination records into Med+Proctor are eligible for weekly drawings. More details will be released soon, but the drawings include a tuition waiver for a year, parking passes, gift cards, etc.  Information about how to upload immunization records is available at: https://inside.ewu.edu/bewell/immunization/.

Discrimination:  Eastern Washington University is committed to nondiscrimination and you can view our nondiscrimination policy here: https://inside.ewu.edu/policies/knowledge-base/ewu-402-02-diversity/.  Please note that vaccination status is not a protected status under state or federal law.

Different Treatment: We understand that this current protocol may cause some people to feel uncomfortable or like they are being treated differently, but we are following the directives of the Department of Health and the Department of Labor & Industries.

Already had COVID-19?: EWU is following the CDC and Department of Health’s directions. The CDC and Department of Health are only allowing people who are fully vaccinated to remove their masks. This has not been extended to people who have previously had COVID-19 due to uncertainty about how long and to what extent such antibodies may provide protection to a future infection.  There is more information on the CDC’s website at: https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/vaccines/faq.html.

Additional questions

Students: please contact Health & Wellness at 509-359-4279 or stuhealth@ewu.edu

Faculty & Staff: please contact Risk Management at riskmanager@ewu.edu