WHATCOM COUNTY, Wash. – Whatcom County school districts are keeping most of their personnel on the job under the COVID vaccine mandate.

The Seattle Times has compiled an exhaustive list of Washington school districts’ vaccine records.

It finds Bellingham is the most vaccinated in Whatcom County with 96% fully vaccinated and 4% receiving either medical or religious exemptions.

The Blaine and Meridian Districts both have a 90% vaccination rate, Ferndale 88%, Mount Baker 85%, Nooksack Valley 83% and Lynden 81%.

Those districts have exemption rates that account for most of their other personnel.

While most of Ferndale’s opt outs are for medical reasons, religion is the reason for most exemptions in the other more rural districts.

Lynden has the highest rate of religious exemptions at 18% followed by Nooksack Valley at 15%.