Flash Report: Biden Withdraws COVID Vaccine Rule

Faced with adverse court rulings, including the United States Supreme Court reinstituting a stay, the Biden administration has Fed-OSHA withdraw its controversial emergency temporary standard mandating vaccines for larger employers.

“After evaluating the Court’s decision, OSHA is withdrawing the Vaccination and Testing ETS as an enforceable temporary standard.” The administration published the statement in a Federal Register posting. The notice takes note of the fact that the Court said the challengers to the regulation “were likely to prevail.”

But it also says that Fed-OSHA is keeping the regulation alive as a proposed standard under regular rulemaking.

“Notwithstanding the withdrawal of the Vaccination and Testing ETS, OSHA continues to strongly encourage the vaccination of workers against the continuing dangers posed by COVID-19 in the workplace,” the posting says, authorized and signed by Fed-OSHA chief Doug Parker.

California’s Emergency Temporary Standard remains in place.

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