Attorneys general from 11 states are suing the Biden Administraiton over its unconstitutional vaccine mandate for businesses with more than 100 employees.
Several nonprofit, religious, and private groups including the conservative news outlet The Daily Wire have also filed lawsuits over the mandate.
“What the government is asking us to do is discriminate against our own employees over their own personal healthcare decisions,” argues Jeremy Boreing, co-CEO of The Daily Wire.
As announced Thursday, businesses with more than 100 employees must force workers to get vaccinated against COVID-19 or undergo regular testing and wear masks. Starting January 4th, businesses that refuse to comply will face fines of up to $14,000 per violation.
In the state of Missouri, the mandate will affect an estimated 3,443 private employers and 1.3 million workers.
“This mandate is unconstitutional, unlawful, and unwise,” wrote Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt, adding that he sued the Biden Administration to “protect personal freedoms, preserve Missouri businesses, and push back on bureaucratic tyrants who simply want power and control.”
The controversial mandate was issued through the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), a federal agency that was granted the power to set minimum workplace safety requirements in 1970. Opponents hope the mandate will be struck down based on the understanding that OSHA was established to deal with workplaces hazards such as chemicals and heat sources, not disease.
“Over the past 20 months, my employees have showed up to work and served their communities in the face of COVID and hurricanes,” argues grocery store owner Brandon Trosclair. “Now I’m being told by the government to insert myself into their private health decisions?…That’s wrong and I won’t stand for it.”
In his lawsuit, Schmitt portrays the vaccine mandate as a federal power grab and asks the courts to decide whether the government is usurping states’ authority to set their own public health policies.
Joining Schmitt in the suit are GOP attorneys general from Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wyoming as well as Iowa’s Democratic attorney general, Tom Miller. States to join the lawsuit as coalitions include: Mississippi, Louisiana, South Carolina, Texas, Utah, Kansas, Kentucky, Idaho, Ohio, Oklahoma, Tennessee, West Virginia, Alabama, Florida, Georgia, and Indiana.
Sources:
11 States File Suit Against Biden’s Business Vaccine Mandate
Lawsuits over workplace vaccine rule focus on states’ rights