Governor of Texas State issued an executive order on Monday, prohibiting any entity, including businesses whose independence the Republicans usually commend, from implementing a coronavirus vaccine mandate on workers, MSN News reported. He also persuaded state lawmakers to impose a similar prohibition into law.
The decision comes as the Biden administration prepares to draft regulations requiring organizations with more than 100 employees to be vaccinated or tested for the coronavirus on a weekly basis. Several major airlines, notably American Airlines and Southwest Airlines of Texas, have stated that they will comply with the government mandate. The directive contradicts recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to reduce the spread of COVID-19, which has killed over 700,000 people in the United States in the last year and a half.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott During A News Conference (Photo: Julio Cortez/MSN)
Forced Vaccination Was Prohibited
“No entity in Texas can compel receipt of a COVID-19 vaccination by any individual, including an employee or consumer, who objects to such vaccination for any reason of personal conscience, based on a religious belief, or for medical reasons, including prior recovery from COVID-19,” the governor’s office said in a press release. “The COVID-19 vaccine is safe, effective, and our best defense against the virus, but should remain voluntary and never forced,” Abbott said in a statement.
Read Also: 32-Year-Old Man Brutally Beats His 75-Year-Old Employer Due To Alleged Underpaid Salary
While Texas has seen a recent decline in new COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations, the state is swiftly approaching 67,000 total fatalities since the pandemic began in 2020 due to a rising death toll from the current surge caused by the delta variant.
Large employers around the country are paying attention to the evidence and instituting vaccine mandates in their workplaces. Some of them, including Southwest Airlines and American Airlines, both based in Texas, have stated that they will follow the CDC’s guidelines and the government mandate.
Abbott Contracted COVID-19
Despite the fact that vaccines have helped eradicate smallpox, polio, and a litany of other fatal diseases, Abbott wants the Texas government to pass legislation barring coronavirus vaccination from being mandated. Despite being vaccinated, Abbott contracted COVID-19, despite having an asymptomatic condition. He emphasized in his directive that vaccines are widely pushed for those who are eligible but must always be voluntary for Texans.
He went above prior restrictions, which outlawed such mandates by state and local government entities, with Monday’s decree, and entered into the private sector. Abbott also accused the Biden Administration of “bullying” the public by implementing tried-and-true public health practices in an effort to keep them safe.
Related Article: Pfizer’s COVID-19 Vaccine Immunity Protection Weakens After Two Months, Studies Confirm
