Can Companies Order COVID-19 Vaccination? Legal Challenges Have Begun

The US is rapidly vaccinating its population with vaccines that received the Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA)  for use in the COVID-19 pandemic. Lawsuits filed by a New Mexico corrections officer and workers from the Los Angeles Unified School District challenge any mandate. The legal basis regarding vaccination orders using vaccines under EUA designation remains murky.  In the end, full approval from the FDA and state-level incentives may replace a federal-level order.

According to University of California Hastings College of Law professor Dorit Reiss “An employee can push back if they can make a case the only vaccine they can get is on EUA, but it’s a much weaker case,” adding, “If employers want to avoid that, especially large employers, an easy out is to contract for BLA [biologics license application] vaccines and offer them on-site,” which she said is what Rutgers University is doing after mandating Covid-19 vaccinations.” Read more here.

(Source: Zachary Brennan, EndpointsNews, 4/6/21)