Wenstrup Releases Statement After University of Maryland Reverses Coercive COVID-19 Directive

WASHINGTON — The University of Maryland (UMD) reversed its coercive COVID-19 directive after Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic Chairman Brad Wenstrup (R-Ohio) and all Majority Members opened an investigation into the University’s policy earlier this month. Under the previous directive, COVID-19 positive students were forced to immediately leave campus and isolate — presumably at their own expense — at a nearby hotel or by boarding a flight home. Effective November 1, University of Maryland students who test positive for COVID-19 will be allowed to isolate in-place within their residence halls.

Chairman Wenstrup released the following statement on the University’s policy reversal:

“Reinstituting an outdated COVID-19 policy that threatened the well-being of Maryland students was not only counterproductive, but also unscientific. The Select Subcommittee wrote to UMD President Pines to highlight the negative impact of similar, pandemic-era education policies on America’s youth and encourage the University to reconsider its destructive directive. Thankfully the University, within days of receiving the Select Subcommittee’s letter, changed its quarantine policy to follow science, data, and common sense. The Majority members of the Select Subcommittee appreciate UMD’s prompt response to our letter and will continue to investigate any potentially harmful COVID-19 policies reemerging at universities across the country.”

Read the University of Maryland’s response letter here.

Read the Select Subcommittee’s October 13, 2023 letter to the University of Maryland here.

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