COVID-19 Response Resource Center: Timely Counsel for your Business

On Jan. 13, the U.S. Supreme Court issued rulings that impact two important aspects of the Biden Administration’s efforts to combat the COVID-19 pandemic.

OSHA ETS for Employers with 100 or More Employees:

Employers with 100 or more employees have been in limbo, trying to determine if they will be required to track vaccination and/or weekly testing for their employees since the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) issued its Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) on Nov. 5, 2021. Not long after the ETS was issued, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed a stay on the ... Read More 

On Sept. 9, 2021, President Biden announced a six-part plan to combat COVID-19. In spoken remarks, he described a “pandemic of the unvaccinated,” caused by the fact that nearly 80 million Americans have yet to get a shot. To address the ongoing crisis, the White House is taking steps to substantially increase the number of vaccinated Americans by ensuring vaccine requirements “become dominant in the workplace.”

Among other things, the plan includes vaccination requirements for federal workers, federal contractors and health care workers at Medicare and Medicaid ... Read More 

The Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) recently issued a COVID-19 Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) for the healthcare industry. The new standard focuses on protecting healthcare workers who face the greatest coronavirus risks – those working in healthcare settings where suspected or confirmed coronavirus patients are treated.

Employers subject to the ETS should review the new standard and immediately begin taking steps to comply.

Who Must Comply?

The healthcare ETS applies to settings where any employee provides healthcare ... Read More 

On Dec. 16, 2020, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) released its much-awaited guidance on the COVID-19 vaccine in the workplace. (See section “K. Vaccinations” at this link (for the full guidance.) This guidance provides crucial information to employers who have been weighing whether, and how, to require or implement the COVID-19 vaccines in the workplace. 

As with other moments during the COVID-19 pandemic, employers will need to be nimble in their response to current events, changing circumstances, and evolving scientific and legal guidance. For ... Read More