Utah politicians balk at Biden’s vaccine order

Photo: Sen. Mike Lee

SALT LAKE CITY — Last week, President Joe Biden announced new vaccine requirements for employers with more than 100 workers, along with federal employees and contractors, and the 17 million workers at healthcare facilities that receive federal funding.

The rules are set to affect about 80 million Americans.

Republican politicians across the country have spoken out against the rules, including some in Utah.

“While we support efforts that encourage vaccinations, we have serious concerns about the legality of the order,” said Gov. Spencer Cox in a statement late last week.

Senator Mike Lee said Biden’s order is “coercing private citizens to undergo a medical procedure.” However, Biden left an out for workers who wish to remain unvaccinated. Those who wish to skip the jab simply must undergo weekly COVID-19 testing.

“Republicans care about getting beyond this pandemic every bit as much as Democrats do,” Dr. Ashish Jha, the dean of the Brown University School of Public Health told the New York Times. He added, “politicians are certainly happy to exploit this issue for political gain, which is why I think the Republican governors are up in arms.”

Utah mandates vaccinations for children across the state that participate in public schooling for things like chickenpox and polio, as do all states across the US.

Many other Republican governors have spoken out about the plan as well. Gov. Henry McMaster of South Carolina said he will fight Mr. Biden’s plan to “the gates of hell.”

There are roughly 80 million Americans that are eligible yet remain unvaccinated.

In response to the legal threats from the GOP, Biden said in a Friday press conference that they can “have at it.”

The Supreme Court has upheld vaccine mandates twice, first in 1905 in Jacobson v. Massachusetts. A majority reasoned that a “community has the right to protect itself against an epidemic of disease which threatens the safety of its members.”

Vaccine mandates are supported by a small majority of Americans. An August poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research found majorities support requiring vaccinations for health care workers, teachers at K-12 schools and public-facing workers like those who work in restaurants and stores. Overall, 55% back vaccine mandates for government workers. And about half of working adults favor vaccine mandates at their own workplaces.