Examples of Bill(s):

• OKSB 276, “Employment discrimination; extending exclusive remedies to employment discrimination based on vaccination and immunity status. Emergency.” 

What It Means: These bills would prohibit an employer (including businesses, healthcare, or government), from taking action to protect their employees and customers from an employee who has not yet received a COVID-19 vaccine.  

Key Talking Points:  

• This legislation restricts the rights of businesses to protect their employees, customers, and their own economic success from disease outbreaks. 
• Private, independent healthcare institutions, caring for patients would be unable to enforce vaccine requirements. 
• Educational institutions would be unable to enforce vaccine requirements which would undermine existing school requirements that have been in place to keep students and teachers safe for decades. 
• There is cautiousness to expand protected classes around discrimination when it comes to other areas of the law, yet this bill does exactly that, creating a new protected class around the unvaccinated. 

Bottom line:  

• Vaccines not only protect oneself, but families, neighbors, and communities.  They are especially important for children, older adults, for those who are immunocompromised, and those who may not be able to get vaccinated.   
• COVID-19 vaccinations protect individuals from severe illness, hospitalization and death and have helped Americans get back to work and to our daily lives.   

• We should work together to encourage all individuals to receive all recommended vaccines.   

Legislator should vote NO on any effort to interfere with the decisions of employers making health and wellness decisions.   

 

Download talking points here.