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from: ZEKE MILLER, Associated Press
Posted: Oct 4, 2021 / 5:27 PM CDT
Updated: 10/04/2021 / 17:27 CDT
President Joe Biden receives a booster syringe of COVID-19 during an event at the South Court Auditorium on the White House campus on Monday, September 27, 2021 in Washington. (AP photo / Evan Vucci)
WASHINGTON (AP) – With just a few weeks left before federal employees need to be vaccinated against COVID-19, the federal government on Monday described procedures for employees to apply for medical or religious exemptions from President Joe Biden’s mandate.
The Office of Management and Budget released the new guidelines on Monday afternoon, ahead of the November 22nd deadline for fully vaccinating workers, describing specific medical conditions that would warrant an exception. According to the guidelines, agencies must instruct workers to receive their first injection within two weeks of an exception request being rejected or a medical condition resolved. They also make it clear that federal agencies can deny medical or religious exemptions if they determine that no other security protocol is appropriate.
The Biden government relies on guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to establish approved medical exemptions, including a history of allergic reactions to the vaccines. Other conditions, including treatment with monoclonal antibodies or a history of multisystem inflammatory syndrome, warrant a 90-day vaccination delay, as recommended by the CDC.
While the CDC recommends women who are pregnant or planning a pregnancy to get vaccinated against COVID-19, the federal government will consider requests to postpone vaccination during pregnancy based on the particular medical circumstances of the worker.
Senior government officials previewed the new guidance to The Associated Press on Monday before they were released by OMB.
Federal employees who apply for exemptions will participate with their authorities in a so-called “interactive process” in which they will be asked to provide documents supporting the exception and possible accommodation. If an application for exemption is denied, workers have two weeks to get an initial shot or disciplinary action is initiated under Biden’s orders.
Unvaccinated workers have to wear masks and maintain social distance and are only allowed to travel to work to a limited extent. New testing guidelines are expected to be introduced in the coming weeks for those who are granted exemptions.
In some cases, agencies can even reject legitimate exemption requests if, based on the nature of the worker’s job, they determine “that no safety protocol other than vaccination is appropriate”.
Under CDC guidelines, people aren’t considered fully vaccinated until two weeks after their second dose of Pfizer and Moderna’s dual mRNA vaccines or Johnson & Johnson’s single dose – meaning most federal employees have no later than November 8th to get that Rolling up sleeves to comply with Biden’s orders.
According to the new federal guideline, neither a previous COVID-19 infection nor an antibody test can replace a vaccination.
In the meantime, private companies with more than 100 employees will be subject to an upcoming OSH regulation requiring all employees to be vaccinated or tested weekly. Biden announced the arrangement weeks ago, but the agency is still working on the details.
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