GOP bill would prohibit requiring any vaccination in Ohio

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — No employer, either public or private, could require employees to receive vaccinations under GOP legislation pending in the Ohio House. Also, workers could not be fired as a result of refusing.

The measure before the Republican-controlled House Health Committee has attracted multiple opponents of COVID-19 vaccines but goes further in addressing mandatory requirements for all vaccines, such as for the flu.

“I believe in vaccines and scientific research. I also recognize that vaccination is a personal choice and that, for a variety of reasons, not all Ohioans can or want to receive vaccines,” said Rep. Jennifer Gross, a

Republican from West Chester in southwestern Ohio, in introducing the bill on May 18.

Gross, a nurse practitioner, told fellow lawmakers she has received other vaccinations but not the one for COVID-19.

The legislation does not mention COVID-19. But Gross made multiple references to employers including hospitals requiring proof of the COVID-19 vaccination as a condition of employment.

The legislation also strengthens notices that schools must provide parents about exemptions they can seek against having their children vaccinated. In addition, the bill would repeal a state law requiring college students to disclose whether they’ve been vaccinated

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The Health Committee heard testimony Tuesday from opponents of the bill.

Not being able to require employees to receive a flu vaccination, or even inquire if they received it, would be “like Russian roulette,” Dr. John Crow of Akron’s Children Hospital told lawmakers.

“If the armor we wear as health care providers is our vaccination, and we as an administration can’t really even know if you’re wearing that armor or not, we would either have to have everybody in the hospital in all circumstances wear protective equipment, or we would have to put the patients’ lives at risk,” Crow said in Tuesday morning testimony.

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The Community Improvement Corporation of Shelby (CIC) is an inclusive publicprivate community partnership focusing on Shelby’s prosperity and growth. This collaborative is primarily dedicated to the economic vitality and downtown revitalization of Shelby. CIC also serves as the parent organization of Shelby Bicycle Days, a community festival focused on bringing families together in downtown Shelby. For more information about the CIC, go to HYPERLINK “http://www. shelbycic.com” www.shelbycic.com.

Similar bills have been introduced nationwide, though the Ohio legislation appears to go farther in covering more vaccines than just the one for COVID-19.

In Louisiana, a pending bill would give employers broad exemption from lawsuits if they don’t require workers or customers to get the coronavirus vaccine and someone contracts COVID-19.

In Tennessee, a bill that failed to make it far in the Gop-dominant Legislature would have prohibited an employer “from requiring an employee to receive an immunization or vaccination for COVID19 against the will of the employee as a condition of maintaining employment.” Similar bills were introduced in Connecticut, Indiana, and Maryland this year, among others.

Hundreds of people supporting the Ohio bill have provided written testimony or traveled to the Statehouse to testify in favor.

“Each person has the right to medical privacy and should have the right to choose their own medical path according to their conscience,” Sally Jones, 52, a mother of three children in Hilliard in suburban Columbus, wrote the committee in testimony submitted on May 25. “It is the responsibility of each individual to take care of their own health. That is NOT the responsibility of the government.”