Alabama argued in a lawsuit challenging the federal vaccine requirements that many university and state agency employees would leave their jobs if required to get vaccinated against COVID-19.
Alabama joined with a coalition of other states in a lawsuit filed late Friday challenging the vaccine mandate on federal contractors. The lawsuit is part of Republican-led efforts to oppose the federal requirements. Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall this week also urged businesses, universities and state agencies to consider employees’ requests for medical and religious exemptions. Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey directed state agencies to cooperate with the state lawsuit.
“From the moment the White House tried to force this vaccine on to Americans, I have said that Alabama is standing strong against it and that the way to stop this is to go to the courts," Ivey said in a statement this weekend.
In the lawsuit filed late Friday, the state argued that many university and Alabama Department of Public Health employees would quit rather than get vaccinated. Both Auburn University and the University of Alabama have said employees must get vaccinated by Nov. 8 because the campuses all are federal contractors.
