Summarised by Centrist
Federal and district courts across the United States are increasingly ruling against various COVID mandates, favouring plaintiffs who argue these mandates violate religious freedoms and employment rights.
In a significant case, Tanja Benton, a former BlueCross BlueShield employee, was awarded over $687,000 for wrongful dismissal due to her refusal to take the vaccine based on religious beliefs. Similarly, the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals upheld that employers must accommodate religious exemptions for vaccination.
The Mayo Clinic is under scrutiny for alleged religious bias in its COVID policies, with the 8th Circuit Court reviving a lawsuit by former employees dismissed for refusing vaccination and PCR testing based on their Christian beliefs.
Judge Duane Benton wrote in the ruling that: “The district court erred by emphasizing that many Christians elect to receive the vaccine. Beliefs do not have to be uniform across all members of a religion or acceptable, logical, consistent, or comprehensible to others.”
Other notable rulings include the 9th Circuit Court’s recognition of mRNA COVID shots as “medical treatment,” complicating mandate enforcement.
The 5th Circuit approved a $1 billion class action lawsuit against United Airlines for religious discrimination, and the 10th Circuit supported University of Colorado students and staff challenging vaccine mandates on religious grounds.
