{"id":19065,"date":"2021-12-13T00:12:48","date_gmt":"2021-12-13T05:12:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.indianz.com\/News\/?p=19065"},"modified":"2021-12-13T00:24:41","modified_gmt":"2021-12-13T05:24:41","slug":"montana-free-press-another-federal-judge-blocks-covid-19-vaccine-mandate","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/2021\/12\/13\/montana-free-press-another-federal-judge-blocks-covid-19-vaccine-mandate\/","title":{"rendered":"Montana Free Press: Another federal judge blocks COVID-19 vaccine mandate"},"content":{"rendered":" <a href=\"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/2021\/12\/13\/montana-free-press-another-federal-judge-blocks-covid-19-vaccine-mandate\/u-s-navy-sailors-conduct-operations-at-billings-clinic-hospital-in-billings-montana\/\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-19078\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" data-attachment-id=\"19078\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/2021\/12\/13\/montana-free-press-another-federal-judge-blocks-covid-19-vaccine-mandate\/u-s-navy-sailors-conduct-operations-at-billings-clinic-hospital-in-billings-montana\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/13\/MontanaCOVID19-scaled.jpg\" data-orig-size=\"2560,1707\" data-comments-opened=\"0\" data-image-title=\"Montana COVID-19\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"&lt;p&gt;BILLINGS, Mont. \u2014 U.S. Navy Lt. Gabriel Parsons, a registered nurse assigned Navy Medicine Readiness and Training Command, Quantico, Virginia, checks to see if intravenous fluids are properly infusing into a patient\u2019s intravenous line at Billings Clinic hospital in Billings, Montana, Dec. 6, 2021. Sailors assigned to Naval Medical Forces Atlantic are deployed in support of the continued Department of Defense COVID response operations to help communities in need. U.S. Northern Command, through U.S. Army North, remains committed to providing flexible Department of Defense support to the whole-of-government COVID response. (U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Andre Taylor)&lt;\/p&gt;\n\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/13\/MontanaCOVID19-1024x683.jpg\" src=\"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/13\/MontanaCOVID19-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"Montana COVID-19\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1707\" class=\"size-full wp-image-19078\" \/><\/a> <figcaption class=\"figure-caption\">  U.S. Navy Lt. Gabriel Parsons, a registered nurse assigned Navy Medicine Readiness and Training Command, Quantico, Virginia, checks to see if intravenous fluids are properly infusing into a patient\u2019s intravenous line at Billings Clinic hospital in Billings, Montana, Dec. 6, 2021. Sailors assigned to Naval Medical Forces Atlantic are deployed in support of the continued Department of Defense COVID response operations to help communities in need. U.S. Northern Command, through U.S. Army North, remains committed to providing flexible Department of Defense support to the whole-of-government COVID response. Photo by <a href=https:\/\/www.dvidshub.net\/image\/6969235\/us-navy-sailors-conduct-operations-billings-clinic-hospital-billings-montana> Sgt. Andre Taylor \/ U.S. Army <\/a>  <\/figcaption>\r\n<div class=\"h3-responsive font-weight-bold\">Federal judge blocks third Biden vaccine mandate<\/div>\r\n<div class=\"h5-responsive sub\">The court order temporarily bars a COVID-19 vaccine requirement for federal workers in Montana and nationwide.<\/div>\r\n<div class=\"date\">Monday, December 13, 2021<\/div>\r\n<div class=\"byline\">By Alex Sakariassen<\/div>\r\n<DIV class=\"source\">Montana Free Press<\/DIV>\r\n<DIV class=\"source-website\"><A \r\nhref=\"https:\/\/montanafreepress.org\/\">montanafreepress.org<\/A><\/DIV>\r\n<P><\/P>\r\nA U.S. District Court judge in Georgia last Tuesday temporarily blocked a third <a href=\/covid19\/>COVID-19<\/a> vaccine requirement issued by President Joe Biden that would apply to federal contractors and subcontractors. In <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pacermonitor.com\/view\/KDQLKJY\/The_State_of_Georgia_et_al_v_Biden_et_al__gasdce-21-00163__0094.0.pdf?utm_medium=email&amp;utm_source=govdelivery\">granting the injunction<\/a>, which was requested by several states including Idaho, federal judge R. Stan Baker wrote that the plaintiffs have a likelihood of proving that Biden overstepped his executive authority in issuing the mandate.<p><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\nMontana is not a plaintiff in the legal challenge in Georgia, having joined a parallel lawsuit filed in a Missouri federal court. Even so, Baker\u2019s order prohibits enforcement of the mandate nationwide. Montana Attorney General <a href=\"https:\/\/content.govdelivery.com\/accounts\/MTAG\/bulletins\/2ffc378\">Austin Knudsen released a statement<\/a> Tuesday welcoming the injunction.<p><\/p>\r\n\r\n\u201cI\u2019ve heard from federal contractors and their employees across the state who were worried they\u2019d be forced to get a vaccine they don\u2019t want,\u201d Knudsen wrote. \u201cJust because a company happens to contract with the federal government does not mean its workers lose their rights. The vaccine mandates are a gross abuse of power \u2014 and now three of them are blocked in Montana. I\u2019ll continue to fight President Biden\u2019s unlawful mandates and protect Montanans\u2019 rights.\u201d<p><\/p>\r\n<div class=\"fb-post\" data-href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/AGAustinKnudsen\/posts\/270891068390029\" data-width=\"500\" data-show-text=\"true\"><blockquote cite=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/AGAustinKnudsen\/posts\/270891068390029\" class=\"fb-xfbml-parse-ignore\"><p>The vaccine mandates are a gross abuse of power \u2013 and now three of them are blocked in Montana. I\u2019ll continue to fight President Biden\u2019s unlawful mandates and protect Montanans\u2019 rights.<\/p>Posted by <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/AGAustinKnudsen\">Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen<\/a> on&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/AGAustinKnudsen\/posts\/270891068390029\">Tuesday, December 7, 2021<\/a><\/blockquote><\/div>\r\n<P><\/P>\r\nA U.S. District Court judge in Georgia on Tuesday temporarily blocked a third COVID-19 vaccine requirement issued by President Joe Biden that would apply to federal contractors and subcontractors. In <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pacermonitor.com\/view\/KDQLKJY\/The_State_of_Georgia_et_al_v_Biden_et_al__gasdce-21-00163__0094.0.pdf?utm_medium=email&amp;utm_source=govdelivery\">granting the injunction<\/a>, which was requested by several states including Idaho, federal judge R. Stan Baker wrote that the plaintiffs have a likelihood of proving that Biden overstepped his executive authority in issuing the mandate.<p><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n<P><\/P>\r\n\r\nMontana is not a plaintiff in the legal challenge in Georgia, having joined a parallel lawsuit filed in a Missouri federal court. Even so, Baker\u2019s order prohibits enforcement of the mandate nationwide. Montana Attorney General <a href=\"https:\/\/content.govdelivery.com\/accounts\/MTAG\/bulletins\/2ffc378\">Austin Knudsen released a statement<\/a> Tuesday welcoming the injunction.<p><\/p>\r\n\r\n\u201cI\u2019ve heard from federal contractors and their employees across the state who were worried they\u2019d be forced to get a vaccine they don\u2019t want,\u201d Knudsen wrote. \u201cJust because a company happens to contract with the federal government does not mean its workers lose their rights. The vaccine mandates are a gross abuse of power \u2014 and now three of them are blocked in Montana. I\u2019ll continue to fight President Biden\u2019s unlawful mandates and protect Montanans\u2019 rights.\u201d<p><\/p>\r\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"100%\" height=\"800px\" src=\"https:\/\/montana.maps.arcgis.com\/apps\/MapSeries\/index.html?appid=7c34f3412536439491adcc2103421d4b\" frameborder=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\"><\/iframe>\r\n<P><\/P>\r\nEarlier this month, a U.S. District Court judge in Louisiana issued a similar injunction against <a href=\"https:\/\/montanafreepress.org\/2021\/12\/01\/federal-judge-blocks-federal-vaccine-mandate\/\">a COVID-19 vaccination requirement for health care workers<\/a>. The requirement, established by the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS), called for employees at hospitals and other health care facilities that receive Medicare and Medicaid funding to receive at least their first dose of the vaccine by December 6. Judge Terry Doughty\u2019s Dec. 1 order said the federal government lacks the authority to implement such a mandate. As did Baker\u2019s order, Doughty blocked enforcement of the mandate nationwide.<p><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\nMontana is a plaintiff in that Louisiana lawsuit, and Doughty\u2019s order came down one day after <a href=\"https:\/\/montanafreepress.org\/2021\/11\/30\/montana-ag-knudsen-speaks-to-vaccine-mandate-protesters\/\">Knudsen spoke at a rally protesting the Sidney Health Center\u2019s announcement<\/a> that it would comply with the CMS requirement. Knudsen and Gov. Greg Gianforte praised Doughty\u2019s order, with Gianforte releasing a statement calling the mandate \u201cunconstitutional\u201d and saying unvaccinated health care workers in Montana could \u201cnow breathe a sigh of relief.\u201d<p><\/p>\r\n\r\nA third federal vaccine requirement was temporarily blocked by a federal appeals court in early November. That requirement, enacted via an emergency change to safety standards enforced by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, called for vaccination or regular testing for <a href=\"https:\/\/montanafreepress.org\/2021\/09\/13\/montana-employers-biden-vaccine-mandate\/\">all workers at companies with 100 or more employees<\/a> beginning no later than January 4, 2022. \r\n\r\n<p><\/p>\r\n<div class=\" content_cards_card content_cards_domain_twitter-com\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"content_cards_image\">\n\t\t\t\t<a class=\"content_cards_image_link\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/GovGianforte\/status\/1468290459554377729\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/11\/07\/msxww2jo_400x400.jpg\" alt=\"Governor Greg Gianforte (@GovGianforte) on X\">\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\n\t<div class=\"content_cards_title\">\n\t\t<a class=\"content_cards_title_link\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/GovGianforte\/status\/1468290459554377729\">\n\t\t\tGovernor Greg Gianforte (@GovGianforte) on X\t\t<\/a>\n\t<\/div>\n\t<div class=\"content_cards_description\">\n\t\t<a class=\"content_cards_description_link\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/GovGianforte\/status\/1468290459554377729\">\n\t\t\t<p>Courts have blocked yet another Biden vaccination mandate. We\u2019ll continue defending the rights and livelihoods of Montanans against @JoeBiden\u2019s unprecedented federal overreach. https:\/\/t.co\/ioI7nKTRrC<\/p>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t<\/div>\n\t<div class=\"content_cards_site_name\">\n\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/favicon.ico\" alt=\"X (formerly Twitter)\" class=\"content_cards_favicon\"\/>\t\tX (formerly Twitter)\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\r\n<p><\/p>\r\n\r\nMontana is one of 11 states that brought the legal challenge. In a statement supporting the lawsuit, Gianforte <a href=\"https:\/\/news.mt.gov\/Governors-Office\/Gov-Gianforte-Statement-on-Lawsuit-Challenging-Pres-Bidens-Vaccine-Mandate-for-Montana-Employers\">denounced the OSHA rule as \u201cillegal\u201d in the state<\/a> due to the Legislature\u2019s passage this spring of <a href=\"https:\/\/montanafreepress.org\/2021\/08\/31\/montana-law-injects-confusion-and-conflict-into-public-health\/\">a new law adding vaccination status as a protected class<\/a> under the Montana Human Rights Act.<p><\/p>\r\n\u201cNot only does President Biden\u2019s mandate violate Montana law banning vaccine-based discrimination, but also it will further strain Montana employers already facing a worker shortage,\u201d Gianforte said in a statement released shortly after the lawsuit was filed. \u201cWe will use all tools at our disposal to protect Montanans against this gross, unprecedented federal overreach.\u201d<p><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n \r\nRepublican U.S. Sen. Steve Daines also <a href=\"https:\/\/www.daines.senate.gov\/news\/press-releases\/daines-stands-with-knudsen-supports-lawsuit-challenging-vaccine-mandate\">came out in support of Montana\u2019s legal challenge<\/a>, calling the OSHA rule \u201cWashington overreach at its worst.\u201d<p><\/p>\r\n\r\n\u201cI encourage all Montanans to talk with their doctor and get a safe and effective COVID-19 vaccine, but do not support top-down government mandates,\u201d Daines said in a Nov. 5 statement. \u201cI will continue fighting back in Congress against these mandates that are hurting Montana businesses and workers. No one should have to choose between getting the shot or keeping their job.\u201d<p><\/p>\r\n<div class=\"mt-1 mb-1\"><ins class=\"adsbygoogle\" style=\"display:block; text-align:center;\" data-ad-layout=\"in-article\" data-ad-format=\"fluid\" data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-8411603009680747\" data-ad-slot=\"6394965691\"><\/ins><script>(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});<\/script><\/div><p><\/p>\r\nThe U.S. Senate is poised to take a vote  on congressional legislation opposing the OSHA rule. Ahead of the vote, Democratic U.S. Sen. Jon Tester issued a statement saying he\u2019s heard repeatedly in recent months from Montana business owners and community leaders concerned about the impacts a vaccine requirement for private companies would have on \u201ctheir bottom lines and our state\u2019s economy.\u201d<p><\/p>\r\n\r\n\u201cThat\u2019s why I intend to join a bipartisan majority of my colleagues in defending Montana jobs and small businesses against these burdensome regulations,\u201d Tester said in the statement Wednesday. \u201cI strongly urge every eligible Montanan to get vaccinated as soon as possible so we can end this pandemic once and for all.\u201d <p><\/p>\r\n\r\nIn the latest order Tuesday, Judge Baker noted that the case involving Biden\u2019s mandate for federal contractors is not about whether vaccines are effective, and acknowledged the \u201ctragic toll\u201d that the pandemic has taken on the nation and the world. \u201cHowever,\u201d he continued, \u201ceven in times of crisis this Court must preserve the rule of law and ensure that all branches of government act within the bounds of their constitutionally granted authorities.\u201d<p><\/p>\r\n\r\n<HR><EM>Staff reporter <a href=https:\/\/montanafreepress.org\/author\/asakariassen\/>Alex Sakariassen<\/a> covers the education beat and the state Legislature for Montana Free Press. Alex spent the past decade writing long-form narrative stories that spotlight the people, the politics, and the wilds of Montana. A North Dakota native, he splits his free time between Missoula\u2019s ski slopes and the quiet trout water of the Rocky Mountain Front. Contact Alex by email at asakariassen@montanafreepress.org.\r\n<\/em><HR>\r\n<P><\/p>\r\n<strong>Note: This story originally <a href=\"https:\/\/montanafreepress.org\/2021\/12\/08\/third-vaccine-mandate-blocked\/\">appeared on Montana Free Press<\/a>. It is published under a <a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nc-nd\/3.0\/us\/\">Creative Commons license<\/a>.<\/strong>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The court order temporarily bars a COVID-19 vaccine requirement for federal workers in Montana and nationwide.","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":19078,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_vp_format_video_url":"","_vp_image_focal_point":[],"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[10,19,13,1,14],"tags":[2301,1828,5,121,969,894,53,335,72,387,2282,2302,249,194,2300,91,195],"class_list":["post-19065","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-business","category-health","category-law","category-national","category-politics","tag-austin-knudsen","tag-cms","tag-coronavirus","tag-employment","tag-georgia","tag-idaho","tag-joe-biden","tag-jon-tester","tag-judiciary","tag-medicaid","tag-medicare","tag-missouri","tag-montana","tag-montana-free-press","tag-osha","tag-senate","tag-steve-daines","no-wpautop"],"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pcoJ7g-4Xv","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/13\/MontanaCOVID19-scaled.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19065","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=19065"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19065\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/19078"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=19065"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=19065"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=19065"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}