HJBR Mar/Apr 2022

HEALTHCARE JOURNAL OF BATON ROUGE I  MAR / APR 2022 19 For the past six months, healthcare administrators and workers across the country have been nervously wringing their hands over whether employers may implement — and employees must com- ply with — recent federal orders and reg- ulations requiring COVID-19 vaccination, testing, and other measures. There has been a whirlwind of back-and-forth rulings and appeals, and the resulting legal morass has been nothing short of infuriating due to the complexity, confusion, and conflicting natures of the various court rulings. What should the average hospital, clinic, or pharmacy make of all this legalese, and what are the federal government’s expecta- tions for businesses adhering to these oner- ous, multi-layered requirements? There is not an easy code to compliance that can be deciphered by even an experienced legal analyst, let alone the rank-and-file employ- ees and managers who are simply attempt- ing to wrap their heads around the current state of affairs and understand their rights and obligations. To help guide you through this brave new world of federal oversight over employee vaccination, it is essential that we discuss the foundations of how we got here, where we currently stand in the tangled web of pending litigation, and devel- opments on the horizon that we can expect in the months (or years) to come. OSHA / CMS / FEDERAL CONTRACTOR MANDATES On September 9, 2021, President Biden issued Executive Order (EO) 14042, which directed federal agencies to require certain federal contractors and subcontractors to implement vaccine mandates as part of COVID-19 workplace safety measures. The requirements of EO 14042 apply to any “workplace locations ... in which an individ- ual is working on or in connection with a Federal Government contract” and cover new contracts and solicitations, extensions or renewals of existing contracts, and exer- cises of option periods for existing con- tracts, where the contract is entered into, extended, or renewed on or after Oct. 15, 2021. Then, on November 5, 2021, OSHA pro- mulgated an emergency temporary stan- dard (ETS), which required employers with at least 100 employees to ensure that all workers are vaccinated or to have the employees submit to weekly COVID-19