In the United States, a Texas judge ruled this Friday (21) that President Joe Biden cannot require federal employees to be vaccinated against the coronavirus, and vetoed the US government from disciplining employees who did not comply with the recommendation. to get vaccinated.
Biden issued an order requiring about 3.5 million workers to be vaccinated by Nov. 22, preventing a religious or medical condition — or face disciplinary action or dismissal.
US District Judge Jeffrey Brown said the question was whether Biden could “require millions of federal employees to undergo a medical procedure as a condition of their employment. That, under the current state of the law, as recently expressed by the Supreme Court, is a bridge too far.”
Brown, based in Galveston and appointed by former President Donald Trump, said the administration could protect public health with less invasive measures, such as recommending mask use and social distancing.
The US Department of Justice said it would appeal the decision.
White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki said 98% of federal employees are vaccinated or have sought medical or religious exemptions. “We are confident in our legal authority,” Psaki said in response to the judge’s ruling.
The judge said it was his understanding that the government would begin disciplining employees who broke the rules soon.
The decision is the latest in a series of court rulings that run counter to government vaccine requirements.
In mid-January, the U.S. Supreme Court blocked the president’s Covid-19 vaccination or testing mandate for large companies, a policy that conservative judges deemed an improper imposition on the lives and health of many Americans. The court allowed a separate federal vaccine requirement for healthcare professionals.
A third major vaccine requirement aimed at employees of federal contractors was vetoed by a federal judge in December.
Covid-19 killed more than 800,000 people in the United States in the course of two years of pandemic and had a strong impact on the country’s economy.
Many large employers, such as United Airlines and Tyson Foods Inc, praised its success in using mandates to vaccinate nearly all employees.
The Supreme Court ruling that blocked the mandate for larger companies prompted some employers, including Starbucks, to drop vaccine requirements for employees.
Reference: CNN Brasil
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