Law ending Biden’s COVID vax mandate for healthcare workers passes U.S. House
By The Iowa Standard | Originally posted on theiowastandard.com
On Tuesday, Congressman Jeff Duncan’s Freedom for Health Care Workers Act passed the House of Representatives with bipartisan support (227 to 203). This legislation would end the Biden Administration’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate for healthcare workers and nullifies the rule issued by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services on November 5, 2021. Congressman Duncan introduced similar legislation (H.J. Res. 67) in 2021, and introduced H.R. 497 last week with over 70 Republican cosponsors. Click HERE for Congressman Duncan’s remarks on H.R. 497 on the House floor.
“The bipartisan passage of the Freedom for Health Care Workers Act in the House is a win for medical freedom and individual liberty,” said Congressman Jeff Duncan. “Over the past few years, far too many Americans were forced to get this shot against their will to keep their job, while others were fired or forced to walk away from their profession altogether. I began leading the charge against Joe Biden’s authoritarian vaccine mandate in 2021 when the frontline workers who were praised as heroes in the early days of the pandemic were forced to get to the shot or get out, even as we struggled with a nationwide staff shortage in the health care industry.”
“Imposing the COVID shot on our health care workers is unscientific and un-American, especially as we now know the COVID shot is ineffective at preventing transmission,” said Congressman Jeff Duncan. “Joe Biden’s draconian COVID authoritarianism has no place in this country, and I urge my colleagues in the Senate to ‘follow the science’ and see this legislation through. While this is an important step, the fight is far from over, and I will continue fighting to end all of Joe Biden’s remaining COVID mandates.”
What Other Stakeholders are Saying:
Freedom Works:“FreedomWorks has consistently believed that the decision on whether to receive the COVID-19 vaccine or not should be left up to the individual and not the government. Congress should also be the branch that writes laws that impacts every American, not unelected bureaucrats. Hospitals and health care systems across the country are facing staffing issues that are directly impacting the quality of care Americans receive and keeping qualified individuals from working only worsens the crisis and harms more people. We thank Rep. Duncan for being a leading voice for Freedom through his service in Congress.”
“Associated Builders and Contractors has consistently opposed the Biden administration’s insistence on imposing unnecessary and overreaching COVID-19 vaccination mandates on our nation’s construction workforce,” said Kristen Swearingen, ABC’s Vice President of Legislative and Political Affairs. “Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, ABC member employers consistently demonstrated their commitment and willingness to create safe and healthy jobsite conditions because health and safety are always our No. 1 priority. H.R.497 would eliminate unnecessary compliance costs and burdens imposed on contractors that provide vital services to our nation’s hospitals and health care facilities and would ensure work opportunities for thousands of experienced, skilled construction workers throughout the country.”
“To continue the vaccine requirements continues to hamstring our ability to serve older adults in need. The restrictive nature of these requirements creates significant headwinds in each community’s ability to hire the best caregivers,” said David Buckshorn, CEO/President of a Continuing Care Retirement Community in South Carolina andChair of Public Policy for LeadingAge South Carolina. “In this time of great inflationary challenges and skilled worker shortages, the layering of requirements on the application process ties our hands behind our back. As we have fought for a dwindling pool of willing skilled employees, our wages have increased beyond our consumers’ ability to pay. Adding vaccine requirements, which many feel are actually putting them at greater health risk than the virus itself, limits our pool that much more.”
