Biden orders tough new vaccination rules for federal workers – KIRO 7 News Seattle

WASHINGTON – (AP) – President Joe Biden on Thursday announced sweeping new pandemic requirements aimed at increasing vaccination rates for millions of federal employees and contractors as he lamented the “American tragedy” of rising but preventable deaths among the unvaccinated.

Federal employees are required to sign forms stating that they have been vaccinated against the coronavirus or comply with the new rules for mask requirements, weekly testing, distancing and more. The harsh new guidelines aim to increase sluggish vaccination rates among the large numbers of Americans who receive federal paychecks – and to set an example for private employers across the country.

“Right now, too many people die or watch someone they love die and say, ‘If only I had the vaccine,'” Biden said in a grim address from the East Room of the White House Tragedy. People die who don’t have to die. “

Pushback is safe for Biden’s action, however. It puts him right at the center of a heated political debate about the government’s ability to force Americans to follow public health guidelines.

The federal government directly employs about 4 million people, but Biden’s actions could have many more implications when federal contractors are considered. Paul Light, professor of civil service at New York University, estimates there may be nearly 7 million other employees who could potentially be involved, along with those who work for companies, government contracts, and corporations who work under federal grants.

Biden, apparently fed up with persistent vaccination resistance in many Americans, harshly reprimanded those who have not yet received vaccinations, saying, “They’re getting sick and filling our hospitals” by removing other beds that they need.

“If you actually aren’t vaccinated, you are creating a problem for yourself, your family and those you work with,” he said bluntly.

At the same time, he expressed his sympathy for people who have received their vaccination and are “frustrated with the consequences of the minority who do not receive the vaccine”. And he reiterated that the fight against the virus is far from over and girds Americans to stay strong in the face of setbacks in the pandemic.

“I know this is hard to hear. I know it’s frustrating. I know it is exhausting to think that we are still in this fight. I know we were hoping this would be an easy, straightforward line with no problems or new challenges. But that’s not real life, ”he said.

His comments came when about 60% of American adults were fully vaccinated. His goal for July 4th was to get at least one shot in 70% of adults and he’s still not quite there. The last value is 69.3%. And there is still considerable opposition from many Republicans and some unions to vaccination mandates for employers.

Aware of the political landmines surrounding mandates, administrators stress that their plan is not to have workers receive the vaccine, but rather to make the lives of the unvaccinated more difficult to encourage them to comply with. Biden directed his team to take steps to make similar requests to all state contractors.

He also directed the Department of Defense to add COVID-19 to the list of required vaccinations for members of the military. Service members must already receive up to 17 vaccines, depending on where they are around the world.

The president reiterated time and again that the vast majority of those who contract the new wave of Delta virus and die are unvaccinated, which puts others at risk and threatens the country’s fragile economic recovery and return to normal.

“It is an American blessing that we have vaccines for every single American. It’s such a shame to waste that blessing, “Biden said.

He praised the recent surge in Republican lawmakers calling on those who are not vaccinated – many of whom, according to surveys, are calling themselves conservatives – to get their shots. And to fend off some Republicans’ skepticism about the safety of the vaccine, he nodded to predecessor Donald Trump, noting that it was “developed and approved under a Republican government.”

“This is not about red states and blue states,” he said. “It’s literally a matter of life and death, life and death.”

Biden renewed his call for schools to be fully opened this fall, even though children under the age of 12 are not yet eligible to receive the vaccine. And he said public health officials still don’t believe Americans need a booster vaccine, although the highly contagious Delta variant is fueling the surge.

The new pressures on workers to get vaccinated could work because evidence shows that people would rather get the vaccine than deal with pressures they find burdensome at work, said Lawrence Gostin, professor of global health law at the Georgetown University Law School.

“People would rather roll up their sleeves and get an injection than undergo weekly tests and universal masking,” he said. “In many ways this is really not a mandate, it gives workers a choice.”

The move on Thursday is not just about federal employees.

The government hopes it will encourage private companies to press their employees more to obtain vaccines that, while widely recognized as safe and effective, have not yet received full approval from the Food and Drug Administration.

“I think we’ve reached this tipping point, and Biden’s announcement will offer a lot of air protection to businesses and boards of directors faced with tough decisions,” said Jeff Hyman, a Chicago-based business writer and start-up recruiter. Company on.

Some of the largest companies in the country have requested vaccinations for their workers. Tech giants Facebook and Google announced this week that their employees will need to provide evidence that they are fully vaccinated before returning to work.

Delta and United Airlines require new employees to provide proof of vaccination. Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley require workers to disclose their vaccination status but do not require vaccination.

But less than 10% of employers said they intend to vaccinate all employees, based on regular surveys by research firm Gartner.

Still, there is resistance.

According to the National Academy for State Health Policy, state lawmakers in the US have tabled more than 100 bills aimed at banning employers from requiring vaccinations as a condition of employment. At least six states have approved such bills.

The Ministry of Justice and the Federal Equal Opportunities Commission have said that no federal laws prevent companies from requiring vaccinations as a condition of employment and federal policy should prevail. But the “medical freedom” bills underscore the resistance that such advice can meet at the state level.

Government actions in New York City and California met resistance from local unions. And before Biden’s announcement, some national unions spoke out against it.

Larry Cosme, president of the Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association, which represents 30,000 federal officials and agents, said in a statement while the organization supports the vaccine, which it opposes.

“Forcing people to undergo medical intervention is not the American way and is a clear violation of civil rights, no matter how advocates try to justify it,” he said.

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Lemire reported from New York.

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