Matthew McConaughey clarifies position on COVID-19 vaccine mandate for kids

Matthew McConaughey clarified via Instagram Stories that his eldest child is vaccinated. The actor updated his stance on COVID-19 vaccine mandates for kids after he said earlier this week that he wants “to find out more information” before supporting any requirements that young children get the shot. McConaughey said he was speaking only about the younger kids.

“When asked my opinion on the subject of children and vaccination mandates, I stated, ‘I couldn’t mandate it for kids just yet,’” McConaughey wrote. “What was not clear is that I was referring specifically to the 5-11 year-old mandate. What is NOT true … is that I am against vaccinating children at all. This is false. In fact, our eldest 13-year-old son, Levi, is fully vaccinated for COVID-19. I appreciate the ear and clarity. Just keep living.”

Last Wednesday, the Centers for Disease Control formally authorized Pfizer’s vaccine for use in children ages 5 to 11 and inoculations began across the country the next day. On Tuesday, McConaughey, who is fully vaccinated, said during The New York Times‘s DealBook summit that he isn’t anti-vaccine but was not fully in support of a vaccine mandate for young children yet.

The actor has not said whether his two younger children, ages 8 and 11, would receive the vaccine.

Beyond his platform as an actor, McConaughey’s comments are sure to draw attention given his interest in a gubernatorial run in Texas.

“I’m measuring it,” he said of running for office on a podcast in September. “Look, it’s going to be in some capacity. … I just — I’m more of a folksy and philosopher poet statesman than I am a, per se, definitive politician.”

McConaughey and his wife Camila share sons Levi, 13, and Livingston, 8, and daughter Vida, 11. So far, more than 360,000 kids aged 5 to 11 have received their first dose of the vaccine.