OSHA Halts Enforcement of Emergency Temporary Standard Vaccine Mandate for Businesses with 100+ Employees

Following a November 12 order from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit, all activities related to the implementation and enforcement of OSHA’s COVID-19 vaccine Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) have been suspended.

Litigation has now been transferred to the 6^th Circuit for review following filings in multiple federal circuit courts across the country. Appointment to the 6^th Circuit Court was made by a “lottery” system for purposes of consolidation. It is likely that the case will eventually make its way to the U.S. Supreme Court for final ruling.

Should enforcement of the ETS resume, it is anticipated that OSHA will offer further clarification on medical and religious accommodations.

Readers should note that suspension of the OSHA ETS, which applies to businesses with 100+ employees, does not have any bearing on the Omnibus COVID-19 Health Care Staff Vaccination Interim Final Rule with Comment Period (IFC), which applies to healthcare facilities regulated by CMS. Although there are lawsuits in play against the CMS rules as well, the deadline of January 4^th, 2022 for full-vaccination is still in place.