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

Last month, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (“OSHA”) COVID vaccine or test mandate for businesses with at least 100 employees. Thereafter, the Biden Administration officially withdrew the mandate as an Emergency Temporary Standard (“ETS”) but left open the possibility of a permanent standard that would include some or all elements of the ETS. This now leaves many employers wondering what to do. Should they continue with their plans to implement mandatory vaccinations? Should they provide an option for weekly ... Read More 

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 Dec. 17, 2021, the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals lifted a stay on the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) Vaccination and Testing Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) for employers with 100 or more employees.

The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals had previously affirmed a stay on implementation or enforcement of the ETS. The legal challenges to the ETS were consolidated in the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals through the multidistrict litigation process.

Now that the Sixth Circuit has lifted the stay, OSHA has indicated that it will give covered employers until ... Read More 

The Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) recently issued a COVID-19 Vaccination and Testing Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) for employers with 100+ employees. The new standard focuses on protecting currently unvaccinated workers – those who have a higher risk of severe health outcomes from COVID-19 and are more likely to contract and transmit COVID-19 in the workplace than vaccinated workers.

Employers subject to the COVID-19 Vaccination and Testing ETS should review the new standard with their attorney and immediately begin ... 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 

This week, two different sets of guidance were published that impact employers’ COVID-19 policies.

First, on July 27, 2021, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) updated its guidance to recommend that all persons, including those who are vaccinated, wear masks in indoor public settings in locales with substantial or high community transmission of COVID-19.

Second, on July 29, 2021, Gov. Roy Cooper issued Executive Order No. 224, which “strongly encourage[s]” employers to follow the CDC guidance and also verify the vaccination status of employees and ... 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 

Today, Governor Roy Cooper issued a new Executive Order 220 extending certain COVID-19 response measures. Among other things, the new Order extends Executive Order 215, which lifted many COVID-19 restrictions, but left in place some face covering mandates. The new Order, which is effective through July 30, 2021, does not change the lifting of mass gathering and social distancing limits detailed in Order 215.  

What were some notable changes made under Order 215?

• Face covering requirements were lifted in most settings.

• Capacity restrictions were lifted in all settings.

• Social ...

Today, the Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) issued a COVID-19 Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) for the healthcare industry. This ETS mandates the development and implementation of a COVID-19 plan in workplaces where employees provide healthcare services or healthcare support services. It also sets out detailed requirements in areas such as patient screening and management, personal protective equipment (PPE), physical distancing, physical barriers, cleaning and disinfection, ventilation, health screening ... Read More 

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) issued updated Question and Answer Guidance on COVID-19 vaccinations today. The new guidance clarifies several issues that were making some employers reluctant to provide incentives to encourage employees to get vaccinated. They also provide some clarification for employers implementing vaccination policies that differentiate among vaccinated and unvaccinated employees. Below are some of the highlights from the new guidance: 

• Employers may require that all employees physically entering the workplace be vaccinated ...

There is no clear guidance on whether employers may treat vaccinated and unvaccinated employees differently. Employers considering changes to their policies that would treat employees differently based on vaccination status, should discuss their particular circumstances with legal counsel. Consulting legal counsel is also important because each work environment may have different factors and unique circumstances to consider when evaluating how to maintain a safe and healthy workplace for employees. Some of the issues to be considered in an employer’s analysis include ... Read More