A dozen U.S. Air Force officers have filed a lawsuit . Military leaders have long argued that to maintain unit health and troop readiness, troops have for decades been required to get as many as 17 vaccines, particularly those who are deploying overseas. The Florida case, in a 187-page complaint, takes measures much further. Theyre not pleasant. She covers operations, policy, personnel, leadership and other issues affecting service members. Read Next: The Navy's Top Enlisted Sailor Is Ready for You to Ask Him Anything. The vaccine mandate divided Americans and has remained a contentious political issue. The complaint also brings up the issue of Food and Drug Administration licensure. There are some notable caveats. To date, no members of the Army or Space Force have received a religious exemption, though nine airmen and three Marines have been approved. He spoke with a reporter last Wednesday but did . Everyone who joins the military must receive a slate of several vaccines to enter, including chickenpox, rubella and hepatitis A. Her work has appeared in Air Force Magazine, Inside Defense, Inside Health Policy, the Frederick News-Post (Md. Mike Barry: Probably not at the Supreme Court level. So if you can find a way to accommodate somebodys religious beliefs, in a less burdensome way right, a way thats less obstructive or cumbersome on their religious exercise, then if the person is really sincere in their religious beliefs, theyll usually accept that. Mike Berry, general counsel for First Liberty Institute,said: Forcing a service member to choose between their faith and serving their country is abhorrent to the Constitution and Americas values . They have similar objections to their Texas counterparts, from opposition to abortion to concerns about modifying their bodies. None of the plaintiffs clarify whether they engage in any other behavior that might be seen as a desecration of that temple, whether its alcohol, drugs, unprotected sex or in the case of the Old Testament tattoos and piercings. Theres yet another lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of the militarys COVID-19 vaccine mandate. Same thing on airplanes, right? The free exercise of religion, even in the military, it triggers the strongest protection available in the law.. If the court certifies the class does the class become all unvaccinated airmen or everyone whos been denied a religious exemption? In the Navy, none of more than 4,000 religious exemptions had been approved, but there were about 252 temporary and 11 permanent medical exemptions. Mike Barry:Well, I mean, thats the beauty of the way that the law works, right? Circuit Court of Appeals panel that federal court injunctions against the mandate are still needed, in part because decisions on deployments and assignments can still be made based on vaccination status. But in terms of the underlying legal issues that are raised, no, theyre exactly the same. This disparity of treatment between medical and religious exemptions was constitutionally prohibited,OConnor said: As a brief preview, the vaccine mandate fails strict scrutiny. So everywhere else in society has been able to figure this out, but our military hasnt because they take such an iron fisted, draconian approach to everything. There is no verifiable evidence that COVID-19 vaccines have killed, or will kill, more military personnel than the disease itself. Lawyers are waiting to see if a federal court in Georgia will stop the vaccine mandate nationwide through another class-action preliminary injunction as well. The Navy comes in second with a total of 469 separations, which includes 50 this past week. Starbucks, for example, doesnt have a vaccine requirement. ", -- Konstantin Toropin contributed to this report. On Tuesday, a federal judge granted an injunction against discipline of an Air Force officer whose religious exemption had been denied. (U.S. Navy) Two service members filed a class action lawsuit against Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin to halt a mandate that all troops receive the coronavirus vaccine and create an exemption. Theres a case to be made for turning these lawsuits into class action matters, Staver said, so that individual service members dont have to sue or just another case. NEW ORLEANS Federal appeals court judges closely questioned a Biden administration attorney Monday on the consequences military personnel might face for refusing COVID-19 vaccinations, even. And yet were short, were saying that were having a hard time recruiting people. However, in a strange turn of events, while Bolsonaro was eating Mickey Mouse-shaped pancakes in Orlando, a group of Bolsonaristas (supporters of Bolsonaro) attacked the Brazilian Supreme Court, Congress, and Presidential Palace in Brasilia and called for a military coup.Lula blamed Bolsonaro personally for the attacks; Moraes quickly moved to suspend Brasilia's governor and security chief . Members face the same injury: violation of their constitutional freedom by defendants clear policy of discrimination against religious accommodation requests, wrote McFarland, of the U.S. District Court of the Southern District of Ohio. The Texas lawsuit also states the plaintiffs are willing to continue to wear masks, social distance and take mandatory COVID-19 tests, rather than get vaccinated. The mandate treats comparable secular activity (e.g., medical exemptions) more favorably than religious activity. Until any harm is remedied, according to Bruns, the case is still active. All rights reserved. Attorneys for the unvaccinated Navy personnel argued in briefs to the 5th Circuit that Austins memo and other Defense Department actions show that the Navy still intends to treat unvaccinated personnel like second-class citizens because of their religious beliefs.. And they recognize that theres almost a presumption of belief. The government burdens religion when it put[s] substantial pressure on an adherent to modify his behavior and to violate his beliefs.. Subscribe on PodcastOne or Apple Podcasts. The Marine Corps had fielded 3,500 religious waiver requests, granting three, in addition to about 250 medical waivers and 400 other administrative approvals. And they have different ranks, different different job responsibilities in the Air Force, a number of them are actually pilots in the Air Force. The goal, representatives for the plaintiffs say, is to at least secure religious exemptions for their clients, but potentially see a Supreme Court ruling that would apply to all service members. Most of the plaintiffs express some sort of Christian faith, though the vast majority of denominations have no formal ban on vaccination. From this foundation they make studied and reasonable decisions about what is good and what is not good or may not be good for their bodies.. Religious freedom laws are set up to avoid a circumstance where the Navy, or the military or the government, is doing a faith test, to determine whether or not you really believe what youre supposed to believe, Griffin said. Rachel Cohen joined Air Force Times as senior reporter in March 2021. The decision sets the stage for a future trial or, possibly, the case winding its way up to the Supreme Court. The number of exemptions has fluctuated over the last several months as some people decided to get the shots or leave the service instead of seeking accommodation. We are kicking out people by the thousands. CBC News reached out multiple times to Galati, who is listed as the spokesperson for the lawsuit in a press release issued by Vaccine Choice Canada. The government has since filed a notice that it plans to appeal the decision. The vaccine mandate for military personnel was put in place in August, with a deadline of Sept. 15. 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Of course, that came because of a federal judges ruling. The Navy already denied these exemptions, but O'Connor. FILE - Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin speaks during a briefing at the Pentagon in Washington, Nov. 16, 2022. T he MAGA medical group that spent the pandemic pushing horse paste and malaria meds as quack COVID cures has a new crusade: suing the Pentagon to stop its vaccine mandate. And in fact, he said, the exemption process is fraught in and of itself. The Navy SEALS filed their lawsuit in November of 2021, describing what they saw as a cumbersome 50-step process to obtain religious exemptions for the COVID-19 vaccine. How large is the class? Theyre not following their own regulations. The content of this website reflects the current thinking of the United States Department of Health and Human Services on the topics addressed and does not create or confer any rights for or on any person and does not operate to bind the Department or the public. Im very confident that this case going to the Supreme Court, Mat Staver whose Liberty Counsel represents plaintiffs in the Florida case told Military Times on Tuesday. Dr. Lee Merritt, a self-described Navy surgeon, stated during an . The military's COVID-19 vaccine was repealed after the National Defense Authorization Act passed and was signed into law this month. But if they eventually get consolidated in the Supreme Court grants cert [writs of certiorari] on something that considers the issue more broadly, would you expect that well get a case or a ruling that goes beyond the narrow issue of vaccines and gives the military some guidance as to how RFRA and broader religious accommodation issues apply to the military? Given the prevailing public health guidelines and the state of the virus, there is currently no intention to require universal vaccination of all service members, Ross said. Were pleased that the court has acted to protect our brave warriors before more damage is done to our national security. That leaves around 14,400 airmen and guardians less protected in the COVID-19 pandemics third year. . By Bethany Blankley (The Center Square) Military leaders will testify on Tuesday before the Military Personnel Subcommittee of the House Armed Services Committee about the impact of the Department of Defense's COVID-19 vaccine mandate on DOD employees and military service members. "We will continue to promote and encourage COVID-19 vaccination for all personnel to ensure readiness, facilitate mission accomplishment, and protect the force.". All rights reserved. So I think that if one of these cases does end up in front of the Supreme Court, it will probably be addressed just on the narrow vaccine issue. The latest class action targets the Air Forces religious accommodation process, arguing that process is set up in such a way that getting a religious exemption to the vaccine is almost impossible. They will also have to make the case that vaccinating, or involuntarily discharging, every service member is the least restrictive means of keeping the force safe from COVID-19, rather than enforcing masking or social distancing or in some cases, grandfathering in troops who acquired some immunity after catching COVID-19. Researchers cultivate these cells for generations, using their derivatives to create or test all manner of pharmaceutical products. The Air Force has approved 135 religious exemption requests out of thousands submitted so far. The quickest vaccine ever developed was for mumps. Please contact Susan Rushkowski at publicfiledc@hubbardradio.com or (202) 895-5027. I mean, all of it is just fraught with ideological purpose, and suspected purpose.. Vaccine refusers often state that the use of fetal cell lines in the creation of the shots conflicts with their views on abortion. A vaccine lawsuit is filed in the U.S. Court of Federal Claims, instead of regular state or federal courts like other drug injury claims. 3 min read POINT PLEASANT, NJ A U.S. Marine from Point Pleasant who was discharged. U.S. Military Service Members with Natural Immunity File Lawsuit over COVID Vaccine Mandate. Mondays arguments were heard by Duncan and Ho, both nominated to the 5th Circuit by President Donald Trump, and James Graves, a nominee of President Barack Obama. So for example, in a different context, somebody who says that theyre a Sabbath observer, and they cannot work on the Sabbath, but that theyre willing to trade ships with somebody, most of the cases Ive seen, theyre actually willing to take, what most people consider be a less favorable shift. And both lawsuits include arguments that the plaintiffs prayed on the issue and came to the conclusion that vaccination would violate their principles. And I havent heard of a single Starbucks shutting down. So thats usually unwise, and so practitioners who are in front of the Supreme Court frequently like us, we usually know not to do that. 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In January of last year, a federal judge in Texas barred the Navy from taking any action against the Navy plaintiffs for being unvaccinated. In the filing, attorneys argue that the plaintiffs are facing criminal conviction and dishonorable discharge, which would strip them of any veterans benefits. The Texas lawsuit argues that the Navy Department is blanketly denying all religious requests, making the process a sham. 26 Feb 2023 11:38:25 Nearly 1,500 more people are exempt for medical or administrative reasons, such as severe allergic reactions or upcoming retirement. Night shifts arent popular, especially on Friday night, and things like that. But there may be good reason for that. Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine syringes at a vaccination clinic in the Peabody Institute Library in Peabody, Massachusetts, on Jan. 26, 2022. Also missing from the lawsuits are any new religious conversion, or simply the possibility that they were previously unaware of the role of replicated fetal stem cells in pharmaceutical development, that would explain why they never objected to any vaccines or medications before. More than 1.14 million out of the 1.4 million active military members have been fully vaccinated as of Wednesday, according to DoD data. Kevin Stitt has pushed back on the COVID-19 vaccine mandate for the military that would apply to the Oklahoma National Guard. Best listening experience is on Chrome, Firefox or Safari. Theyll accept that alternative and say, okay, you know, Im willing to do that instead. WASHINGTON The Air Force has discharged 27 people for refusing to get the COVID-19 vaccine, making them what officials believe are the first service members to be removed for disobeying the. 11. For the Texas case, its more likely those sailors will receive religious exemptions, but that they wont necessarily change the way the military mandates vaccines or reviews exemptions. Their objections to the vaccine fall into one of four categories, according to their complaint, including opposition to abortion and the use of fetal cell lines in pharmaceutical development, belief that body modification violates their religious principles, direct, divine instruction not to receive the vaccine, or declining to inject trace amounts of animal cells into ones body.. 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The World Health Organization approved Covaxin for emergency use in late 2021, making it a viable option for airmen who object to the three main U.S. shots. The Department of the Air Force, which also issues guidance for the Space Force, has detailed it will be rescinding letters of admonishment, counseling or reprimand; records of individual counseling; nonjudicial punishments; and current involuntary discharge proceedings connected to vaccine refusal. Follow him on Twitter @TomNovelly. And yet they say, you know what, we now believe that its okay, for our employees to not be vaccinated, its okay for our customers to not be vaccinated. I dont think that the precedent is going to be that big of one, Griffin, the former Coast Guard lawyer, said. The story seems pretty similar to whats going on with these airmen. A federal judge in Cincinnati has expanded a temporary exemption to a Department of Defense COVID-19 vaccine mandate to cover thousands of service members in the U.S. Air Force and Space Force,. Plaintiffs sincerely held religious beliefs that their bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit and that they are to glorify God with their bodies lays the foundation for everything they do, consume, or inject into their bodies, according to the Florida lawsuit. In December, the Air Force announced it had discharged 27 people for refusing to get the COVID . Still, the organization said Covaxin is still a safe and effective product. On Friday, President Joe Biden signed the National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal year 2023, which repeals the COVID-19 vaccine mandate for service members. Jared Serbu: I want to go back to what you said earlier about the process being a sham, because I want to try and draw how much of an issue that actually is, in these cases. Rabies shots are required only for some service members in certain career fields. All 16 service members joined the lawsuit anonymously, listing in the filing only their currently assigned bases and statuses in the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, or reserve components. Mike Barry:Well, First Liberty Institute represents nine Air Force members who are challenging the Air Forces enforcement of its vaccine mandate. msn back to msn home news Skip To Navigation "This guidance is a promise of what the Air Force is saying it will do," Bruns told Military.com. On Jan. 7,the Supreme Court is set to hear oral argumentsin a set of high-profile, consolidated cases on the Biden administrations vaccine mandates for private-sector entities with 100 or more employees, and for health care facilities that receive Medicaid and Medicare funding. All the things that, you know, that the Navy was doing to harass and punish sailors we basically wanted that to all stop, Mike Berry, a former Marine judge advocate and now vice president at First Liberty Institute, which represents the Texas plaintiffs, told Military Times on Wednesday. By The Associated Press WASHINGTON A bill to rescind the Covid-19 vaccine mandate for members of the U.S. military and provide nearly $858 billion for national defense passed the House on. I think one of the militarys concerns is whats the limiting principle here? The government responded to the lawsuit by pointing out that immunization requirements are common in the military beginning with the Continental Army under George Washington and that vaccines and are essential to preventing the transmission of diseases in close quarters. While the Jan. 3 victory applies only to the named naval personnel in the lawsuit and not to the entire vaccine mandate issued by the Department of Defense, for religious freedom advocates and faithful Americans, the victory is a breath of fresh air and a much-needed reminder that individuals who have selflessly committed themselves to the defense of the Constitution and its enshrined liberties are sometimes the very people whose rights need defending the most. Subscribe to Federal Drives daily audio interviews onApple PodcastsorPodcastOne. Otherwise, the courts are going to be flooded with thousands of lawsuits, he said. In late August, Pfizers vaccine received full approval under the brand name Comirnaty. Were going from a 50-step process to a zero-step process? Duncan asked. AFLDS has also pushed ivermectin and. As of Tuesday, the Air Force had denied about 6,800 initial religious waiver requests and 3,600 appeals, and has not ruled on nearly 3,500 more cases. Jared Serbu: Got it. Nov. 2, 2021. Hey you have the Friday night shift, right? OConnormade note of thisin his order, calling the process for seeking a religious exemption nothing more than theater, stating that the Navy merely rubber-stamps each denial, and stressing that the record overwhelmingly demonstrates that the Navys religious-accommodation process is an exercise in futility.. The latest class action targets the Air Forces religious accommodation process, arguing that process is set up in such a way that getting a religious exemption to the vaccine is almost impossible. There is no COVID-19 exception to the First Amendment. Military officials announced this week that, after months of warnings, they have . Theyre usually willing to accept that and say, look, yeah, Im happy to. And really, the greatest harm here is not just to our members of the military who are suffering under this, but its actually to our nation. Nor do they mention the host of common medications that also use these stem cells, including Tylenol, Advil/Motrin, aspirin, Tums, Pepto Bismol, Benadryl, Sudafed and Claritin. More than 1 million Americans have died from COVID-19 since the virus began spreading in December 2019, and the U.S. has recorded around 89 million cases. Ryan Bruce, a Marine Corps spokesman, told Military.com.