When Biden Vaccine Mandate For Large Businesses Will Go Into Effect

After it was initially blocked from moving forward by the Fifth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, the Biden Administration was handed a rare win in its attempts to issue COVID-19 vaccine mandates on Friday, after the Sixth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the government can enforce a vaccine-or-testing mandate for businesses with 100 or more employees.

“The record establishes that COVID-19 has continued to spread, mutate, kill and block the safe return of American workers to their jobs,” Juge Jane B. Stranch wrote in the decision. “To protect workers, OSHA can and must be able to respond to dangers as they evolve.”

While the mandate is once again in effect, its status could remain temporary, as the New York Times reports that those suing against it—including the National Retail Federation—intend to appeal.

An initial deadline for workers to be vaccinated so they would not have to undergo regular weekly testing was set for Jan. 4, but USA Today reports that the deadline is now extended to accommodate for those who waited on getting vaccinated due to uncertainty over whether the mandate would go into effect. Workers who are not fully vaccinated by that date will not have to face the regular testing regimen until Feb. 9, giving those who wish to vaccinate more time to fully do so.

In addition, the Labor Department is not issuing penalties to businesses before Jan. 10 and isn’t going to take any action on testing rules until Feb. 9, as long as employers are “exercising reasonable, good faith efforts to come into compliance.”

The reinstated mandate comes as the United States braces for a potentially dark winter surge of cases driven by holiday gatherings, loosened restrictions, lower vaccination rates and an uptick in new cases due to the Omicron and Delta variants. Data from the CDC shows an uptick in cases over the last 30 days throughout the country, with over 156,000 new cases reported on Dec. 16. A slight uptick in deaths has also occurred, with 1,089 reported on that same date.

Several states, particularly ones in the Northeast and New York tri-state area, have seen sharp upticks in caseloads in recent weeks.

To date, 72.5% of the American population has received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine and 61.3% are fully vaccinated. An additional 28.6% have also received a booster shot.