A ruling today stops New York State from enforcing a vaccine mandate for health care workers who object on religious grounds. A federal judge in Utica said the state could not explain why the same accommodation for health care workers who claim a medical exemption from the vaccine mandate could not also be extended to those with a sincere religious objection. The judge made clear he was not deciding whether the 17 individual plaintiffs deserved a religious exemption from the mandate, but rather he wanted to protect their right to seek one.
Statement from Governor Kathy Hochul:
My responsibility as Governor is to protect the people of this state, and requiring health care workers to get vaccinated accomplishes that. I stand behind this mandate, and I will fight this decision in court to keep New Yorkers safe.
