Posts Tagged ‘vaccine mandate’

The United States Supreme Court issued highly anticipated rulings today on the large employer (OSHA) and healthcare (CMS) vaccine mandates put forth by the Biden administration.   While neither ruling is final – both were procedurally interim rulings regarding previously imposed stays – both are almost certainly indicative of how the Court will ultimately rule. Concerning the large employer mandate, a 6-3 majority ruled that the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) exceeded its authority. The Court stated, “[a]lthough Congress has indisputably given OSHA the power to regulate occupational dangers, it has not given that agency the power to regulate public… read more »

Following the vaccine mandates over the past several weeks has seemed more like calling play-by-play than monitoring legal developments – and so we again find ourselves sorting through multiple changes of possession and challenges.   To bring everyone up to date, the current state of play is as follows:   Healthcare (CMS) Mandate  Initially blocked in 10 states by a Missouri federal judge on November 29, 2021, then blocked nationwide by a Louisiana judge on November 30, 2021.   UPDATE: A Fifth Circuit ruling on December 15, 2021, upheld the Louisiana court’s injunction – but only as to the 14… read more »

This page features updates and new information from previous articles. And just like that…all three prongs of the broad federal vaccine mandate issued as part of the Path Out of the Pandemic initiative – specifically those applicable to federal contractors, certain healthcare workers, and employers with 100 or more employees – have been blocked by multiple federal courts. Here’s a rundown of where things stand as of today: Initially blocked in 3 states by a Kentucky judge on November 30, 2021, then blocked in all states by a Georgia federal judge on December 7, 2021. Initially blocked in 10 states… read more »

The White House earlier today (November 4th, 2021) announced the release of: 1) OSHA’s Emergency Temporary Standard requiring employers with 100 or more employees to require workers to be vaccinated or tested weekly; 2) Vaccination requirements for healthcare workers at facilities participating in Medicare and Medicaid facilities; and 3) Extension of the deadline for federal employees and contractors to be vaccinated from December 8, 2021 to January 4, 2022.   Highlights of the nearly 500 page OSHA rule for large employers include: As of January 4, 2022: Employees must be vaccinated or be tested weekly – at their own expense;… read more »

Article Updated 11/10/2021. An update to this article can be found HERE. While the Fifth Circuit has issued a temporary stay on implementation of OSHA’s Emergency Temporary Standard for large employers, this is not the final word.  The next step will be for the various lawsuits (there are others pending in the 6th, 7th, 8th, 11th, and DC Circuits) to be consolidated and assigned to a single court of appeals – to be chosen by lottery (yes, you read that correctly…).  That process is likely to occur next week, but it may be months before we have a ruling –… read more »