Texas court blocked Biden’s executive order to vaccinate state employees

A federal district judge in Galveston, Texas ruled that President Joe Biden may not require federal employees to be vaccinated against COVID-19 and barred the government from disciplining noncompliant employees.

The executive order issued by President Joe Biden in mid-2021 required federal employees (about 3.5 million people) to be vaccinated no later than November 22 of last year – with few exceptions for religious or medical reasons.

Judge Jeffrey Brown ruled that the issue was whether the president had “the right to require millions of federal employees to undergo a medical procedure as a condition of their employment. Given the recent opinion of the U.S. Supreme Court, such a position leads too far.” Brown believes the government can sufficiently protect public health with less drastic measures, such as mask-wearing and social distancing.

Justice Brown was appointed by former President Trump. His ruling is the latest in a series of court decisions that run counter to measures taken by the Joe Biden administration to vaccinate the public.