Supreme Court declines to hear COVID-19 vaccine case

By Andrew Rice
The Center Square

The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday declined to hear a case challenging Washington state’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate for healthcare workers.

The case, Curtis v. Inslee, sought to challenge former Washington Gov. Jay Inslee’s August 2021 COVID-19 vaccine mandate policy. More than 80 employees at the nonprofit healthcare system Peace Health filed a lawsuit against Inslee and the company for enforcing the mandate and firing them.

A district court and federal appeals court both dismissed the employees’ lawsuit, arguing the group did not bring forth specific rights that were violated that would require a lawsuit to be brought forth.

“Employees are not vaccine recipients but rather vaccine refusers,” the appeals court wrote. “Once again, Employees have not demonstrated that they have a right to sue under this type of agreement.”

Employees sought to argue they had the right to refuse taking an “investigational drug” as part of the contracts they signed as part of initial employment. Lower courts argued the COVID-19 vaccine was similar to a drug employees were required to take before the requirement was put in place.

“There is no material distinction between the refusal of a vaccine and Employees’ refusal of administration of an investigational drug that is clinically identical to a vaccine,” the court of appeals wrote.

The high court’s denial to hear the case will leave in place the mandate and likely prevent future health care worker groups from filing a lawsuit against future mandates.