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Arizona businesses, schools await ruling on vaccine mandates

Posted 11/30/21

After 20 months of battling the spread of the new coronavirus, precautionary measures are still established in Arizona.

President Joe Biden this fall announced a nationwide mandate for employers …

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Health

Arizona businesses, schools await ruling on vaccine mandates

Posted

After 20 months of battling the spread of the new coronavirus, precautionary measures are still established in Arizona.

President Joe Biden this fall announced a nationwide mandate for employers with more than 100 workers that would require employees to get vaccinated or tested for the virus weekly. He gave his speech as part of a new “action plan” to fight the rising number of coronavirus cases. His announcement applies to roughly 90 million Americans.

“This is not about freedom or personal choice, it’s about protecting yourself and those around you,” said Biden during a White House speech.

This mandate, which has been put on hold in some states by federal courts, would affect health care facilities, federal contractor facilities, nearly all governmental facilities, private companies, airline companies, and a select number of large corporations.

As part of that move, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services announced it will require more than 25,000 health care workers to be vaccinated to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

The United States Department of Labor and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration was directed to require businesses with 100 or more employees make certain their employees are either vaccinated or submit weekly coronavirus testing.

Large restaurant corporations in the Gilbert area are proceeding with caution and preparing to make changes to abide by these new COVID-19 rules.

Andy Swingley, the managing partner at Texas Roadhouse in Gilbert, said he worries the mandate might trample people’s personal privacy. 

“We just don’t know to the extent of what it’s going to mean,” said Swingley.

He and Texas Roadhouse prepared a backup plan. Swingley shared that already has about 40 tests ready to go in his office if he needs to begin randomly testing his employees.

“Right now, I don’t believe that making people tell me that they’ve been vaccinated is the right thing to do. That’s still a personal choice,” said Swingley. “We are just trying to wait to find a way to keep it so you can still maintain your personal privacy about how you manage your health but yet still make it work, make it feel safe for your guests.”

Swingley believes the vaccine is a good thing to help people, but at the same time, “people are responsible to take care of their own health and that us being responsible for their health, I just struggle with crossing those boundaries as to what’s right and wrong,” he said.

In the upcoming weeks, Swingley said h believes he will receive final instructions on what action to take for his business. Swingley plans to determine how the instruction will impact his business and his employees; and if his business is not negatively impacted by the change, then he will move forward with it.

Biden’s mandate will affect teachers, according to published reports. The plan does not require vaccines for locally governed schools; however, some educational leaders believe teachers will be among the required individuals for vaccines in multiple states.

In states with OSHA plans, it is said teachers will be among those required to receive weekly coronavirus testing or get the vaccine, according to an explanation by The School Superintendents Association.

Victoria Tonnemacher, a freshman and sophomore English teacher at Perry High School in Gilbert, said she believes the mandate will not affect public schools.  

“I don’t think it will happen,” said Tonnemacher.

She said in schools, she questions if it is a violation of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 to require or give information about someone’s health background to the school. So, she believes it won’t affect the students who attend large public schools.

HIPAA is a federal law that created national standards to protect sensitive patient health information from being shared without the patient’s knowledge or consent, the CDC said. Violations occur when a third party gives up patient information, however, it is not a HIPAA violation for a person to give information about their own health.

“I don’t know how they would require a vaccination or require testing every week and be able to track that,” she said. “It just seems impossible. So, they’re going to find an alternative route if they want to do that.”

Arizona currently has an array of immunization requirements for children in public schools that include vaccines for hepatitis B, polio, measles, mumps and rubella, chicken pox either before attending kindergarten or through their school years, according to the Arizona Department of Education and Arizona Department of Health Services

The state does offer medical, religious or personal beliefs exemptions, according to ADHS.

When it comes to any alternative solutions in the prevention of the spread of the COVID-19 virus, Tonnemacher believes it is still up to question.

“It hasn’t even been brought to the board,” said Tonnemacher. “I think they’re still struggling; they’re still talking about masks.”

She continued explaining, that in the Chandler Unified School District, the recent topic of discussion amongst the district officials was, masks and what they are doing with them.

“People are having a hard time with masks. If vaccinations and proof of testing come up, I think people are going to lose their minds,” said Tonnemacher.  

Mea Griffin is a student at the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Commnications at Arizona State University.