Biden White House issues COVID-19 vaccination deadline for large firms

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Companies with more than 100 employees must ensure that their employees are vaccinated against COVID-19 by January 4th or weekly according to the new rules announced on Thursday by the Biden administration, of which around 80 million employees in total Country affected will be tested for the virus.

The White House said “more vaccinations are needed to save lives, protect the economy and accelerate the way out of the pandemic”.

Health workers in facilities participating in Medicare and Medicaid are also required to be fully vaccinated, which, according to the White House, applies to more than 17 million workers nationwide in around 76,000 health centers, including hospitals and long-term care facilities.

The White House said the new rules would preempt all state and local laws and weaken Governor Greg Abbott’s ban on COVID-19 vaccine mandates, labor lawyers said.

Abbott passed an executive order last month banning Texas companies, including private companies, from requiring anyone to get the COVID-19 vaccine. The Biden government’s new rule would lift part of the ban, but Abbott’s order would still apply to everyone else in the state, including local governments, school districts, and smaller businesses.

“Governor Abbott continues to hear from countless Texans who fear losing their jobs as a result of this federal violation,” Abbott spokeswoman Renae Eze said in a written statement to families or being fired for taking the COVID vaccine because of their religious beliefs, theirs Health or personal conscience. “

However, labor attorney Karen Vladeck said federal regulations allow medical and religious exemptions. The governor’s office statement also hinted at future legal action.

Employers do not have to pay for or offer tests to employees, which increases pressure on employees to get vaccinated to avoid inconvenient testing requirements.

“It’s a strain on employees,” says Vladeck, who is based in Austin. “You have to pay for your own tests, which are very expensive, or you have to get tested in person, which takes time.”

The state did not have an immediate record of how many Texas employees would be affected by the new rules, but independent Texan labor experts said millions of Texas workers are likely to be affected.

The conflicting state and federal orders had created confusion among businesses. Days after Abbott issued its order banning vaccine mandates, companies that entered into contract work with the federal government were also forced to vaccinate all employees by order of the White House.

The conflicting vaccine mandates put the many Texan companies that get federal contracts in a difficult position: complying with federal laws and breaking Abbott’s prohibition, or complying with Abbott and refusing to do business with the federal government.

American Airlines and Southwest Airlines said they would continue to require vaccinations from employees despite Abbott’s new order.

The Texan business community also resisted laws resulting from Abbott’s orders. Texas bills to prevent all Texan companies, including hospitals and private companies, from mandating COVID-19 vaccines for employees was a priority for Abbott in the latest special legislation. However, the bills were not passed after corporate groups opposed the proposals and at least one major Republican lawmaker spoke out against one of the bills, calling it “anti-business”.

While corporations opposed recent Texas legislation, Glenn Hamer, President and CEO of the Texas Association of Business, did not warmly welcome Biden’s new rules.

“TAB remains a strong advocate of voluntary vaccination efforts,” Hamer said in a written statement. “However, with businesses struggling to find workforce, the Biden administration’s announcement will almost certainly increase that challenge.”

Recently-elected Republican MP Brian Harrison, former chief of staff of the US Department of Health during the Trump administration, wrote to Abbott on Thursday to call on Abbott to convene lawmakers “immediately” for a special session of the legislature on the new vaccine rules.

“If the federal government can order individual Texans to put needles in their arms against their will, we might as well give up any pretext to live in a free society or have a federal system,” Harrison said.

Texas and other states have already sued the Biden government over COVID-19 vaccination rules for federal contractors, which went into effect in October.

Disclosure: Texas Association of Business is a financial supporter of The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, non-partisan news organization that is funded in part by donations from members, foundations, and corporate sponsors. Financial supporters play no role in the journalism of the Tribune. You can find a full list of them here.

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https://www.texastribune.org/2021/11/04/white-house-vaccination-businesses/