President Joe Biden plans to announce that the Department of Labor will require all employers with 100 or more workers to mandate their employees get vaccinated against the Chinese coronavirus, or else undergo coronavirus tests at least once a week.
Businesses that fail to comply with the new sweeping federal vaccine requirement could be subject to fines of up to $14,000 per violation, an administration official said, according to a report by Associated Press.
The mandate — which will be enacted through a forthcoming rule from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) — is expected to affect about 80 million U.S. workers.
A senior administration official also reportedly dismissed concerns that the order will result in litigation, stating that Labor Secretary Marty Walsh has “a right to do this,” adding that the new rule will be “done in a couple weeks” and implemented shortly thereafter, reports Forbes.
Biden is also expanding a directive that withholds federal funds from nursing homes that don’t mandate the vaccine for staff to “most healthcare settings” that participate in Medicare and Medicaid — which covers 17 million health care workers, the report adds.
The president is also reportedly planning to stop giving federal workers the choice to undergo weekly coronavirus tests instead of getting vaccinated. Federal workers and contractors will reportedly have 75 days to get fully vaccinated.
The Biden administration is also planning to call for large entertainment venues and arenas to require vaccinations or proof of a negative test in order to enter.
Rep. Jeff Duncan (R-SC) reacted to the sweeping mandate, tweeting Thursday, “A vaccine mandate veers into medical privacy & infringes on Americans’ liberties. The decision is NOT up to [Biden] or Dr. Fauci.”
“A forced vaccine should never be a condition for employment & this is nothing short of tyranny. It cannot be tolerated,” Rep. Duncan added.
Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) also weighed in on the matter, tweeting, “[Biden] doesn’t have the power to mandate this. If government could mandate the vaccine for federal employees & contractors, it would require a vote of Congress. It’s medical tyranny.”
“People will remember those who did this to them & who did not speak out,” Rep. Massie added.
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