The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is reinstating President Joe Biden's Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccine and testing mandate after a federal appeals court reinstated the order. Almost immediately after the decision, multiple groups asked the Supreme Court to intervene and make a final ruling.
Biden's sweeping vaccine mandate applies to over 80 million American workers who are employed by businesses that have 100 or more staffers. On Friday, Dec. 17, the Sixth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati voted two to one to grant a motion to lift the injunction that blocked OSHA's vaccine-or-test mandate.
"In a conservative estimate, OSHA finds that the ETS [Emergency Temporary Standard] will 'save over 6,500 worker lives and prevent over 250,000 hospitalizations' in just six months," wrote the court in its ruling. "A stay would risk compromising these numbers, indisputably a significant injury to the public. The harm to the government and the public interest outweighs any irreparable injury to the individual petitioners who may be subject to a vaccination policy."
As a small gesture towards private businesses covered by the mandate, OSHA has given companies a small amount of compliance breathing room.
According to the original mandate, employers have to be in compliance with OSHA's mandate by Dec. 6 and all employees covered by the mandate had to be vaccinated or agree to be subjected to weekly testing requirements by Jan. 4, 2022.
But after the appeals court's decision, OSHA said it will not issue citations for noncompliance before Jan. 10 so that companies have more time to adjust to the requirements. OSHA will also not issue companies citations for noncompliance with testing requirements before Feb. 9 "so long as an employer is exercising reasonable, good faith efforts to come into compliance with the standard," said the agency. "OSHA will work closely with the regulated community to provide compliance assistance."
Employers who refuse to comply with the mandate will be subject to penalties. This can include a fine of up to $13,653 per violation for serious offenses. OSHA can also slap companies with heightened penalties for willful or repeated violations, which can cost businesses up to $136,532 per violation. (Related: Fauci as Gestapo chief: Regime will "mandate" COVID vaccines if "hardcore group" of patriots continue refusing the jab.)
Biden's vaccine mandate heads to Supreme Court
Within hours of the appeals court's ruling, at least three petitions were filed with the Supreme Court asking it to make a final ruling blocking the mandate.
One of the groups that filed a petition was the American Trucking Associations (ATA), which originally filed a suit against the mandate in federal court on Nov. 9 along with several state trucking groups that got the injunction against the mandate.
ATA President and CEO Chris Spear announced one hour after the ruling that he had filed an emergency application with the Supreme Court to have the injunction reinstated.
"A number of other groups have filed similar requests with the Court as well," said Spear. "Our hope is that the Supreme Court will act quickly and stay the rule well before this new Jan. 10 date."
One other group that filed a petition raised its concern that the mandate could force workers to quit rather than get vaccinated, leaving businesses without enough manpower during a severe labor shortage.
"The resulting labor upheaval will devastate already fragile supply chains and labor markets at the peak holiday season," the petition stated.
Other petitioners asking the Supreme Court for an injunction include at least 27 states with Republican governors or attorneys general and national industry associations like the ATA, the National Retail Federation and the National Federation of Independent Business. Religious groups like the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Kentucky have also asked the Supreme Court to intervene.
The appeals to the Supreme Court were filed with Associate Justice Brett Kavanaugh, the justice assigned to handle petitions from the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals. He will consider the petitions and refer cases to the full court for consideration.
Kavanaugh has asked the Biden administration to respond to the petitions by Dec. 30.
Listen to this episode of the "Health Ranger Report," a podcast by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, as he talks about how he and Alex Jones predicted the coming of vaccine passports and quarantine camps more than a decade ago.
Read more about the fight against Biden's unconstitutional COVID-19 vaccine mandate at Vaccines.news.
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