Who Is Suing Over New York’s Vaccine Mandate?
The New York Times
In courtrooms from Manhattan to Utica, judges are weighing whether exemptions that would cover thousands of health care workers will be allowed.
New York’s vaccine mandate for more than 650,000 hospital and nursing home workers took effect this week, prompting tens of thousands of holdouts to get their first dose of a Covid-19 vaccine as the deadline neared. But the mandate has also prompted a flurry of lawsuits across the state, brought by nurses and others who are seeking exemptions.
In courtrooms from Manhattan to Utica, judges are weighing whether to carve out exemptions that would cover thousands — or even tens of thousands — of health care workers. If courts order such relief, hospitals and nursing homes could be more vulnerable to coronavirus outbreaks, health care officials say.
Alternately, if the mandate is upheld and health care providers fire significant numbers of unvaccinated workers, some hospitals and nursing homes could face staff shortages — although, so far, industry officials say that most seem able to handle limited job losses.
