Florida’s Governor Ron DeSantis announced that the state will be filing a lawsuit against the Biden administration over its COVID-19 vaccine mandate.
The Government released details regarding the mandate earlier this week, stating that Americans who work at companies with 100 or more employees will need to be vaccinated against COVID-19 by January 4th or get tested for the virus weekly.
The new requirements will apply to about 84 million workers. People who work in nursing homes, hospitals and other facilities that receive money from Medicare and Medicaid will not have an option for testing and will need to be vaccinated.
Governor DeSantis said Florida will be following Georgia and Alabama, as well as other plaintiffs with a lawsuit against the Biden administration. He said people should be able to make their own decisions regarding healthcare.
“This is not consistent with a government of limited and enumerated powers,” the Republican governor said. “There is no general police power, there is no power to mandate on the American people from the federal government.”
“Individuals should make informed choices about their own healthcare,” he added. “They shouldn’t be coerced into getting the jab.”
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration said companies that fail to comply could face penalties of nearly $14,000 per violation. Workers will be able to ask for exemptions on medical or religious grounds.
OSHA will require businesses to provide paid time off for employees to get vaccines and sick leave to recover from side effects that prevent them from working. The requirements for masks and paid time off for shots will take effect Dec. 5.
Because vaccines are free, OSHA said, companies do not have to provide or pay for tests.
The White House also said Thursday that it would push back its federal contractor vaccine mandate deadline from Dec. 8 to Jan. 4. A coalition of Republican attorneys general have already filed suit against the federal contractor mandate.
