Early in the COVID-19 pandemic, CMS enacted several temporary waivers in an effort to give health care providers flexibility to respond to the pandemic. On April 7, CMS announced that it would be phasing out some of these...more
On January 14, CMS issued guidance regarding when the COVID-19 vaccine mandate for health care workers will be enforced in the 24 states affected by the Supreme Court’s ruling issued the previous day. Those states are...more
Ending months of uncertainty, today the Supreme Court issued its decision allowing CMS to enforce its vaccine mandate for healthcare workers. The Court’s decision stays the injunctions entered by federal courts in Missouri...more
1/14/2022
/ Biden Administration ,
Biden v Missouri ,
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Mandates ,
Healthcare Workers ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Lack of Authority ,
OSHA ,
SCOTUS ,
Stays ,
Vaccinations ,
Virus Testing ,
Workplace Safety
In the ongoing saga of the federal government’s attempts to impose vaccine mandates on certain sectors, on Wednesday, December 15, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit concluded that the nationwide...more
On Tuesday, November 30, Louisiana federal district Judge Doughty issued a nationwide injunction against implementation of Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ (CMS) vaccine mandate for health care workers. Judge...more
On Monday, November 29, U.S. District Judge Matthew T. Schelp, issued a preliminary injunction stopping the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ (CMS) vaccine mandate for health care workers until the court can hear the...more
Thursday, November 4th the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released its interim final rule requiring all employees and certain suppliers of most Medicare and Medicaid certified providers to be fully vaccinated...more
11/5/2021
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ,
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Covered Employees ,
Documentation ,
Health Care Providers ,
Healthcare Facilities ,
Interim Final Rules (IFR) ,
Medicaid ,
Medicare ,
Religious Accommodation ,
Vaccinations ,
Vendors
As many employers begin implementing COVID-19 vaccine mandates, they are receiving a large number of employee requests for exemption from the vaccine for religious reasons. Before this week there was no direct guidance from...more
Now that the Delta variant is surging, employers are venturing into the arena of mandating that their employees take the COVID-19 vaccine. But deciding to mandate vaccination and actually implementing such a requirement is no...more
Congress is turning its attention to President Biden’s $1.9 trillion economic stimulus package, which is called the American Rescue Plan. Because the package includes enhanced unemployment benefits that are currently set to...more
2/18/2021
/ Child Care ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Economic Stimulus ,
FEMA ,
Joe Biden ,
Minimum Wage ,
Paid Leave ,
Restaurant Industry ,
Unemployment ,
Vaccinations ,
Workplace Safety
In follow-up to our previous blog regarding mandating the COVID-19 vaccine in the workplace, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has now issued guidance addressing that very issue. According to the...more
Indiana Governor Eric Holcomb announced new coronavirus restrictions on November 13 that took effect on November 15, 2020 and continue through December 12, 2020. All businesses are allowed to be open subject to the...more
11/18/2020
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Governor Holcomb ,
Health and Safety ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Masks ,
Personal Protective Equipment ,
Public Gatherings ,
Public Health ,
Quarantine ,
Social Distancing ,
Workplace Safety
With the prospect of an FDA approved COVID-19 vaccine on the horizon, employers are already wondering whether they will be able to require their employees to get the vaccine. Because the pandemic has caused changes in other...more
After schools and day cares closed in the spring due to the pandemic, employers and parents alike were hopeful that summer would bring a return to normalcy – especially in the form of camp for kids. Alas, that hope has not...more
As has come to be expected, the guidance regarding COVID-19 has changed again. This time the CDC narrowed the definition of who constitutes a “close contact” for purposes of tracing people with potential exposure to someone...more
With the ink barely dry on the president’s signature, employers are now turning to whether they need to and how to comply with the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (“Act”) (HR 6201). Since the law was signed by...more
As we previously reported, on March 14, 2020, the U.S. House of Representatives passed House Bill 6201 (HR6201). The legislation seeks to protect private sector workers and government employees during the COVID-19 pandemic. ...more
Presented by SmithAmundsen COVID-19 Task Force...more
3/17/2020
/ Continuing Legal Education ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Policies ,
Federal Labor Laws ,
Health and Safety ,
Human Resources Professionals ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Public Health ,
State Labor Laws ,
Webinars ,
Workplace Safety
On March 14, 2020, the U.S. House of Representatives passed House Bill 6201 (HR6201). The legislation seeks to protect private sector workers and government employees during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the legislation...more
Presented by SmithAmundsen COVID-19 Task Force....more
3/16/2020
/ Continuing Legal Education ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Policies ,
Federal Labor Laws ,
Health and Safety ,
Human Resources Professionals ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Public Health ,
State Labor Laws ,
Webinars ,
Workplace Safety
As the new coronavirus (COVID-19) slowly appears outside China, employers should take precautions to protect their workplaces. To that end, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) issued guidance for businesses and employers...more