PROVIDENCE, R.I. (Legal Newsline) – Heath care workers in Rhode Island are off to a rocky start in their fight against a COVID-19 vaccine mandate.
U.S. District Judge Mary McElroy denied a motion for a temporary restraining order on Sept. 30 against the mandate, which was issued Aug. 17 and required almost all health care workers in the state to be vaccinated by Oct. 1.
Because no religious exemption was included in the mandate, four anonymous plaintiffs in the industry claimed it violated the U.S. Constitution and the Civil Rights Act.
“While the plaintiffs argue that the Regulation ‘outright forbids Plaintiffs from even seeking (or retaining already granted) reasonable accommodations from Covid-19 vaccination in accord with their sincerely held religious beliefs,’ that is not an accurate reading of the text of the Regulation,” McElroy wrote.
“Nothing in the language prevents any employer from providing a reasonable accommodation to an employee who seeks one in accord with their sincerely held religious beliefs. Indeed, the Regulation is silent on the issue of religious exemptions.”
Employers do not encounter a “physical impossibility” with employees who do not get the vaccine, McElroy wrote.
“Although the plaintiffs contended at oral argument that the Regulation makes reasonable accommodation virtually impossible, there is no evidence before the Court at this stage that would allow the finding of a likelihood of success on the merits on that claim,” McElroy wrote.
McElroy will now hear arguments on a preliminary injunction, having rejected the plaintiffs’ calls to deny their injunction request if the TRO was denied.
“The defendants objected to the consideration of a preliminary injunction at this juncture, citing the desire to further develop the factual record. The Court finds that the defendants would be unduly prejudiced if not afforded this opportunity,” McElroy wrote.
She noted the challenge was filed Sept. 23 – eight days before the vaccine mandate’s deadline – even though the order was issued in August.