Biden to announce vaccine mandate for companies with more than 100 employees
The federal government is ramping up its vaccination push with an expected announcement of tighter measures that could impact over 100 million Americans.
President Joe Biden will reportedly announce on Thursday a mandate requiring all employers with more than 100 workers to require COVID-19 vaccinations for its employees or weekly tests for the coronavirus.
Fox News said the tighter mandate is expected to affect as many as 100 million Americans across the country — forcing millions to get vaccinated.
The rule on employers with more than 100 workers will impact about 80 million Americans, while roughly 17 million workers at health facilities receiving federal Medicare or Medicaid also will have to be fully vaccinated.
Biden set to announce new vaccination requirements for 100m US workers https://t.co/if8DRzsw13
— Guardian news (@guardiannews) September 9, 2021
This follows an order in August requiring nursing home staff to be fully vaccinated.
Biden plans to have Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) issue a regulation mandating employers to test their employees.
The report noted that companies will be responsible for paying for the tests, but they will be able to pass the expense on to their employees.
Biden to demand federal employees be vaccinated
Meanwhile, the Democratic president is also said to be signing an executive order soon that would require all employees of the executive branch and contractors who do business with the federal government through another employer to be fully vaccinated — with no option for the weekly tests.
This would cover several million more workers, according to reports.
Back in July, Biden announced that federal employees must be vaccinated with the choice to be tested weekly.
The latest mandate would then require that large companies provide paid time off so their workers can get vaccinated.
Forbes businesses who fail to comply with the new rule might face fines of up to $14,000 per violation.
In contrast, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said in July that a federal vaccine mandate was “not the role of the federal government.”
President Biden has also said earlier that vaccines should not be mandatory.
FLASHBACK: Biden admin on vaccine mandates
Biden: "I don't think it should be mandatory"
Psaki: "That's not the role of the federal government." pic.twitter.com/xlvA6VONA8
— Daily Caller (@DailyCaller) September 9, 2021
“That’s not the role of the federal government; that is the role that institutions, private-sector entities, and others may take,” Psaki told reporters earlier, when asked whether the federal government should step in and issue vaccination mandates.
Meanwhile, Biden’s Thursday address will call on states to enact vaccination regulations for schools in order to ensure that in-person learning can continue, explore a third booster injection in the coming months, and vow to make COVID-19 testing more accessible.
According to data, 54% of Americans have been fully vaccinated or over 177 million individuals. In total, 63.4% got at least one shot of the coronavirus vaccine or 208 million individuals.
