Similar suits have been brought throughout the country by service members across the military branches. The temporary restraining order means the military cannot punish airmen and Space Force guardians whose application for a religious exemption to one of the federally endorsed vaccines was denied or is still being processed. All of the military services have released vaccine refusal policies, none of them involving judicial or non-judicial charges for simply staying unvaccinated. The Bonkers Lawsuit to Stop the Pentagon's Vaccine Mandate Their lawyers have called a sham with applications being categorically denied., The Defense Department denied the process was onerous and said the Navy has a compelling interest in requiring vaccinations for personnel who often operate for long periods in confined spaces that are ripe breeding grounds for respiratory illnesses.. Jehovahs Witnesses, who ban military service for their members, are probably the most prominent. Lt. Col. Edward Stapanon, a Catholic instructor pilot at the 435th Fighter Training Squadron in Texas, said he requested retirement twice but was turned down because he hasnt finished out an extension of his active duty service commitment that ends in 2024. Assuming, maybe Im assuming too much. Washington Technology Power Breakfast: Cyber Command planning intelligence center, TSP contractor promises more improvements, for other communicable diseases and infections, FOIA backlogs on the rise after record number of requests, Revived bills would alter feds payment obligations during shutdowns, federal first responders pensions, VA launches equity task force to address disparity in benefits decisions based on race, White House $1.6B COVID fraud plan gives federal watchdogs increased staffing, VA deputy secretary, leader on EHR rollout and customer experience, is stepping down. Researchers cultivate these cells for generations, using their derivatives to create or test all manner of pharmaceutical products. Jared Serbu: Yeah, theres a ton. "This guidance is a promise of what the Air Force is saying it will do," Bruns told Military.com. Mike Barry:It would be everyone who is requested and been denied a religious accommodation from the vaccine mandates, specifically the COVID vaccine mandate. This whole thing is really unprecedented, right? Eglin AFB officers part of federal court challenge to military COVID And, in fact, the Department of Defense allows medical exemptions and administrative exemptions from the vaccine. Theres been a lot of great saints that have gone to prison, so Im willing to do that.. The Florida filing also spends much more time on the biographies of the complainants. On August 30, both Robert and Mulvihill asked U.S. District Court Judge Raymond Moore for a temporary restraining order regarding the vaccinations for military members who have already been. What the government will have to prove, in both cases, is that while its granted thousands of medical and administrative exemptions though many of those are temporary that the high bar for approval of religious exemptions is necessary for keeping the force healthy and deployable. National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program - Health Resources and The vaccine mandate divided Americans and has remained a contentious political issue. About 97% of the Department of the Air Force is fully vaccinated, though a larger share of active duty airmen and guardians have gotten the jab compared to their Guard and Reserve counterparts. While it allowed service members to apply for religious exemptions to the mandate, it has not granted a single one. And both lawsuits include arguments that the plaintiffs prayed on the issue and came to the conclusion that vaccination would violate their principles. U.S. Airmen file lawsuit fighting Biden COVID-19 vaccine mandate - WOWT The prospect of dishonorable discharges has been a concern for some against vaccine mandates, but that type of discharge can only be handed down through a court-martial conviction. "There are no current COVID-19 vaccine restrictions on deployments or assignments for the Marine Corps as a service," Capt. There was no indication when the judges would rule. Kevin Stitt with Fox News ads U.S. Military Service Members with Natural Immunity File Lawsuit over A Ruling That Could End the Internet as We Know It - The New York Times If you want to swap with me, and they do that through the employer, or their employer offers that. Two Eglin Air Force base officers are among the plaintiffs in a federal lawsuit challenging the COVID-19 vaccine mandate for U.S. military personnel. Vaccine refusers often state that the use of fetal cell lines in the creation of the shots conflicts with their views on abortion. The Heritage Foundation, a petitioner in the case challenging the private-sector vaccine mandate,has asked the courtto invalidate the governments order. The Texas lawsuit argues that the Navy Department is blanketly denying all religious requests, making the process a sham. A 5th Circuit panel rejected the Biden administrations request to block the judges order. Pfizer Inc wants to intervene in a Texas federal lawsuit seeking information from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration used in licensing the company's COVID-19 vaccine, a litigation move that . They have similar objections to their Texas counterparts, from opposition to abortion to concerns about modifying their bodies. She covers operations, policy, personnel, leadership and other issues affecting service members. Biden appointee behind unlawful military vaccine mandate to step down. The latest data from the military show that roughly 30,000 active-duty service members remain unvaccinated against COVID-19, despite a Defense Department mandate issued in August and deadlines. And really, the greatest harm here is not just to our members of the military who are suffering under this, but its actually to our nation. The service members sued this week to vacate a Pentagon vaccine mandate for all those in the military, arguing they face imminent harm if a court order isn't issued temporarily blocking the. So if you can find a way to accommodate somebodys religious beliefs, in a less burdensome way right, a way thats less obstructive or cumbersome on their religious exercise, then if the person is really sincere in their religious beliefs, theyll usually accept that. The Marine Corps separated 165 Marines over the past week due to their refusal to get vaccinated against COVID-19. And then if you come back and you say, oh, no, but my exemption is a medical exemption [see Contraindications and Precautions]not a religious exemption, then the military says, Oh, well, in that case, we welcome you with open arms. In other words, its usually ill-advised to take an opinion on one subject or one issue, and then try to extrapolate and say and that and say, Well, that should apply across the board to all issues. On Monday, Heather Hacker, an attorney for the Navy personnel, said the situation could be seen as worse now for them now that the older mandate policy has been rescinded, because current policy does not provide for a sailors religious objections to the vaccine to be considered when deployment or assignment decisions are made. The mandate treats comparable secular activity (e.g., medical exemptions) more favorably than religious activity. But the DoD is just saying Nope, we wont even recognize that we wont even consider it, even though they consider natural immunity for other communicable diseases and infections and things like that. Theyll accept that alternative and say, okay, you know, Im willing to do that instead. Top Pentagon officials do not plan to alter their current "lawful orders" requiring the coronavirus shots for troops, unless they are granted waivers for medical or religious purposes, the. Troops who refused COVID vaccine still may face discipline Ross said such questions were speculative and not at issue in the case before the court. The Florida case also expands the arguments past the religious exemption process, citing a handful of other arguments made by COVID-19 vaccine detractors. Jared Serbu: Mike, thanks for being here. Those records are supposed to be cleared by March 31, according to the guidance. Military leaders have long argued that to maintain unit health and troop readiness, troops have for decades been required to get as many as 17 vaccines, particularly those who are deploying overseas. Rachel Cohen joined Air Force Times as senior reporter in March 2021. Another lawsuit, first filed by troops attached to Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, has led to temporary protections for around 10,000 active-duty, Active Reserve, reserve and National Guard members of the Air Force and Space Force who requested a religious exemption from the COVID vaccine, although only those who have been denied an exemption would face immediate action. 16 Service Members Sue to Halt DoD's Vaccine Order | Military.com Were pleased that the court has acted to protect our brave warriors before more damage is done to our national security. While the Jan. 3 victory applies only to the named naval personnel in the lawsuit and not to the entire vaccine mandate issued by the Department of Defense, for religious freedom advocates and faithful Americans, the victory is a breath of fresh air and a much-needed reminder that individuals who have selflessly committed themselves to the defense of the Constitution and its enshrined liberties are sometimes the very people whose rights need defending the most. (U.S. Navy) Two service members filed a class action lawsuit against Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin to halt a mandate that all troops receive the coronavirus vaccine and create an exemption. Lawyers are waiting to see if a federal court in Georgia will stop the vaccine mandate nationwide through another class-action preliminary injunction as well. Just three days later, he issued a far more sweeping order granting 4,095 service members a religious exemption from the COVID vaccine. Yet another lawsuit challenging military's - Federal News Network All told the lawsuit includes 26 SEALs from the original complaint, plus five special warfare combatant crewmen, five divers and one explosive ordnance disposal technician who joined the case in late January. That leaves around 14,400 airmen and guardians less protected in the COVID-19 pandemics third year. "We are grateful for the support of the Legislature and the Governor in the State's efforts to block the . COVID vaccine mandate lawsuit: Air Force officers argue shots are But nevertheless, how many, I fly almost on a weekly basis for my job. Complainants push back on the militarys position that remaining unvaccinated endangers the force and undermines national security, since the vast majority of troops have received all of a one- or two-shot regimen. Here, Plaintiffs must decide whether to lose their livelihoods or violate sincerely held religious beliefs. The Navy SEALS filed their lawsuit in November of 2021, describing what they saw as a cumbersome 50-step process to obtain religious exemptions for the COVID-19 vaccine. Mike Barry: I think theres almost 30 now. More than 1.14 million out of the 1.4 million active military members have been fully vaccinated as of Wednesday, according to DoD data. Editors note: This story has been updated with information from the hearing. Marine Corps Exceeds 1,000 COVID-19 Vaccine Separations, Navy at 469 The "rule" and the ways it will be fought 1:43:40 How to fight the NFA and its unconstitutional rule about barrel lengths. While powerful, that statement isnt true. The Supreme Court ruled in March 2022 that the sea service was allowed to reassign sailors who had refused the shot and filed exemption requests to nonoperational commands. However, vaccine opponents note that commanders can still make decisions on how and whether to deploy unvaccinated troops, under a memo signed last month by Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin. Jared Serbu: This case seems remarkably similar to another case that I think First Liberty was also counsel on with a group of Navy SEALs before the very same judge, I believe too. Dr. Lee Merritt, a self-described Navy surgeon, stated during an . The Religious Freedom Restoration Act sets a low bar for proving ones religious beliefs, in that if someone states them, they are assumed to be sincere. Theyre not pleasant. The Army also announced in a Friday press release that ongoing reviews of COVID vaccine exemption requests, records of soldiers who requested COVID vaccine exemptions, vaccine requirements for accessions or pre-commissioning programs, and travel restrictions based solely on COVID vaccination status will be removed or amended. And now people will be able to take the analysis Supreme Court used and say, Okay, the way that they analyzed this issue, that might give us some indication of how they would analyze other issues, right. Because how do you avoid getting to the point where anyone can deny or refuse any lawful order by claiming that they have a sincerely held religious belief that would be encumbered by it? And in some cases, according to some reports, its even more durable than the vaccine and you dont have to get boosters and things like that. How large is the class? Most of the plaintiffs express some sort of Christian faith, though the vast majority of denominations have no formal ban on vaccination. The lawsuit filed by Air Force members and other federal employees claims that "the US Constitution and numerous federal laws make it unlawful to compel persons to be vaccinated." The plaintiffs. (Susan Walsh/AP, File). And in fact, he said, the exemption process is fraught in and of itself. Are there major differences here? On Jan. 7,the Supreme Court is set to hear oral argumentsin a set of high-profile, consolidated cases on the Biden administrations vaccine mandates for private-sector entities with 100 or more employees, and for health care facilities that receive Medicaid and Medicare funding. Related: Navy Lifts COVID-19 Vaccine Requirement for Deployments. The Marine Corps had fielded 3,500 religious waiver requests, granting three, in addition to about 250 medical waivers and 400 other administrative approvals. Dr Terry Adirim, the government bureaucrat behind the infamous and unlawful Pentagon vaccine mandate, will "leave her post in the coming days," reports FedScoop. Kevin Stitt has pushed back on the COVID-19 vaccine mandate for the military that would apply to the Oklahoma National Guard. The soldier and Marine also want their case escalated into a class action lawsuit to take in other military personnel plus Department of Defense contractors. More:Dark money group targets Oklahoma Gov. While it allowed service members to apply for religious exemptions to the mandate, it has not granted a single one. "We will continue to promote and encourage COVID-19 vaccination for all personnel to ensure readiness, facilitate mission accomplishment, and protect the force.". The quickest vaccine ever developed was for mumps. And one of the reasons for that is if they if theyre between the ages of 17 and 23, and theyre not vaccinated, were not even willing to talk to them. And so theyre basically closing off an entire segment of society in a discriminatory manner. Pfizer and Modernas mRNA products used cells replicated from a fetus aborted in the 1970s to make sure the vaccines worked in human cells. Troops who refuse mandatory COVID-19 vaccines will likely also face courts-martial for the same offense, said Zaid, who represented Task & Purpose in a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit to force . Attorney General O'Connor Sues Over COVID-19 Vaccine Mandate for The Florida case began with a Navy and Marine Corps officer in 2021, but has soon ballooned to 36 plaintiffs from all military branches as well as some civilian Defense Department employees. Theyre not following their own regulations. The Florida case, in a 187-page complaint, takes measures much further. Night shifts arent popular, especially on Friday night, and things like that. And I havent heard of a single Starbucks shutting down. The Navy has, however, granted medical exemption requests submitted by other personnel. Federal judge temporarily halts Air Force's COVID-19 vaccine mandate "Former Soldiers may petition the Army Discharge Review Board and the Army Board for Correction of Military Records to request corrections to their records," the service's press release said. Many religious exemption applications have explained that the service members werent aware of the use of fetal stem cells prior to all of the controversy over the COVID-19 vaccine, but for the purposes of the Religious Freedom Restoration Act, they dont have to explain themselves. The policy does allow commanders to "implement Health Protection Measures at any time or manner deemed necessary in support of operational safety and effectiveness." Adam Rawnsley. Im very confident that this case going to the Supreme Court, Mat Staver whose Liberty Counsel represents plaintiffs in the Florida case told Military Times on Tuesday. Thomas Bruns, a Cincinnati-based attorney with Bruns, Connell, Vollmar & Armstrong representing the service members, told Military.com on Monday that the service members in that case are promised full relief from any harms caused by the mandate. Another difference is that the VICP is a no-fault compensation program. But there may be good reason for that. We are hemorrhaging people like crazy, and were having a really hard time recruiting capable people to join our military. And yet they say, you know what, we now believe that its okay, for our employees to not be vaccinated, its okay for our customers to not be vaccinated. COVID-19 vaccine no longer a mandate for military. What that means for The lawsuit is one of two that have grabbed headlines in recent months, as the military has imposed mandatory vaccination deadlines that have since lapsed for all of the services and their components, save the Army National Guard and Army Reserve. And well be back week after week.. DOD Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness Gilbert R. Cisneros Jr., All rights reserved. In one of many ongoing federal lawsuits challenging COVID-19 vaccine mandates across the country, Judge Reed O'Connor of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas issued a group . The plaintiffs argue that violates the Religious Freedom Restoration Act and the First Amendment. The first military COVID-19 vaccine mandate will take effect in November. VICP provides compensation for injuries and deaths caused by Fox News U.S. Feb. 23, 2023. The government responded to the lawsuit by pointing out that immunization requirements are common in the military beginning with the Continental Army under George Washington and that vaccines and are essential to preventing the transmission of diseases in close quarters. In a hypothetical alternate universe where it were the Navy and the Air Force, the rest of the services had an exemption process or a waiver process that did look more credible to you and to the court, do you lose these cases? Simply put, no actual fetal cells were used in the development of any of the COVID-19 vaccines the cells in question were replicated by scientists, in labs, from tissue harvested previously. WASHINGTON (AP) The military services are still reviewing possible discipline of troops who refused the order to get the COVID-19 vaccine, defense officials told Congress on Tuesday, and they provided few details on how many of those who were forced out of the military would like to return. And yet were short, were saying that were having a hard time recruiting people. Military service members have. The lawyers for the biggest lawsuit against the service said that, after the Navy's policy change on deployment, they were "still assessing the impact of this policy on our Navy SEAL clients and more than 4000 class members," according to a statement released Thursday night. They argue that their 1st Amendment rights are being infringed upon, because their sincerely held religious beliefs prevent them from receiving the COVID-19 vaccine. Right? Pentagon: Judge's halt of vaccine mandate for - Stars and Stripes Navy quietly rolled back punishments for SEALs seeking religious The Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA), it doesnt, the sincerity issue is what everybody seems to be concerned with, right? They are, theyre ignoring the law, theyre ignoring the Constitution. Pope Francis has called vaccination against COVID-19 a moral obligation and an act of love., Frequently people let themselves be influenced by the ideology of the moment, often bolstered by baseless information or poorly documented facts, he said in January, adding that vaccines are not a magical means of healing, yet surely they represent, in addition to other treatments that need to be developed, the most reasonable solution for the prevention of the disease.. For the Texas case, its more likely those sailors will receive religious exemptions, but that they wont necessarily change the way the military mandates vaccines or reviews exemptions. All the things that, you know, that the Navy was doing to harass and punish sailors we basically wanted that to all stop, Mike Berry, a former Marine judge advocate and now vice president at First Liberty Institute, which represents the Texas plaintiffs, told Military Times on Wednesday. 3 min read POINT PLEASANT, NJ A U.S. Marine from Point Pleasant who was discharged. The Texas lawsuit also states the plaintiffs are willing to continue to wear masks, social distance and take mandatory COVID-19 tests, rather than get vaccinated. The same day the Pentagon set the deadline for the services, several of the branches -- namely the Army and Air Force -- began issuing their guidance, which stated they would remove or correct adverse actions in records related to vaccine refusal. The Catholic Churchs policy on derived fetal cells has been clear for decades: the sin of abortion is so far removed in pharmaceutical development that a Catholic is not violating any principles by getting vaccinated. But it may not take a lawsuit for the issue to change the environment when it comes to mandatory vaccination.
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