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Supreme Court Poised To Block Biden's Workplace Vaccine Mandate
[Free Beacon] The Supreme Court signaled Friday that it will block President Joe Biden’s vaccine mandate for big businesses.In an emergency hearing, the Court’s conservatives seemed persuaded by trade groups and red states who say vaccine mandates should be crafted by Congress or the states, and not a federal agency. The Biden administration’s rule requires covered businesses to compel vaccinations for their employees or regularly test the unvaccinated. A victory for the plaintiffs would require the White House to fundamentally rework its pandemic strategy. The employer mandate is central to Biden’s bid to increase vaccinations, but it comes amid mounting frustration with his administration’s approach to the pandemic. Pervasive testing shortages linger a year into his term, and top officials have admitted that the emergence of new variants caught them by surprise. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration issued the vaccine rule in November. It directs businesses with more than 100 workers to mandate vaccines on their own or test unvaccinated workers on a weekly basis. Unvaccinated workers must wear masks at all times and pay out of pocket for testing. There are limited exceptions for employees who work remotely full time and those who work outside. The Supreme Court's liberal members insisted courts have no business interfering with public health decisions during a pandemic. Justice Sonia Sotomayor—who dialed into the argument from her chambers, rather than participate in-person—was the most outspoken member of the liberal trio and painted a dire picture of the pandemic. She claimed that the Omicron variant is as deadly as the preceding Delta variant and that at least 100,000 children are hospitalized "in serious condition" with COVID, some of whom are on ventilators. Posted by: Besoeker 2022-01-10 |
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