OSHA finally decided to suspend enforcement of the vaccine mandate imposed by the Biden administration on private employers.
Their decision comes a week after a federal court of appeals told the federal agency to stop it until the legal standing of the regulation could be determined.
Judge Kurt D. Engelhardt, in an opinion issued Friday, said the policy was “fatally flawed” and raised serious constitutional concerns.
Now the case goes to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, where a GOP-appointed majority will decide the final fate of Biden’s mandate, CNBC reports.
But has the damage already been done in Colorado?
Some lawmakers and pundits have speculated that Biden’s strategy with the vaccine mandate recognized that the order would likely be indefensible in court but hoped that its chilling effect would pressure employers to comply in advance of any litigation.
The Colorado Sun reports the mandate has had a polarizing effect on hospitals across the state, and that 5,290 health care workers have either left or lost their jobs because of the mandate.
From Jeff Mengenhausen, CEO of Montrose Memorial Hospital:
It sowed tension, creating division at a time when nerves were already frayed. And that is something it will take the hospital a while to recover from.
“It’s so polarizing,” he said. “It’s taking your focus away from dealing with the pandemic, taking care of those caregivers who are taking care of those patients. It’s just adding another distraction on top of that.”
At Prowers Medical Center in Lamar, labor and delivery services were suspended after they failed to meet the mandate.
From CEO Karen Bryant, the Sun reports:
“The pandemic has taken a toll on health care personnel, leading to burnout, fatigue, early retirement, and others leaving the field of health care entirely,”
“The resulting shortage of health care workers combined with the new vaccine mandate, has only aggravated the situation. Since we have not yet reached the 100% threshold, we have had to evaluate our ability to provide our current services in a safe manner.”
The Biden mandate bluff has caused enough damage. We hope it dies a quick death in the courts.