Chancellor Glenn Boyce announced on Wednesday that the University of Mississippi is abandoning its COVID-19 vaccine mandate for employees. The decision comes after a federal judge in Georgia issued an injunction against President Joe Biden’s vaccine mandate for federal contract workers.
Judge R. Stan Baker temporarily blocked implementation of the federal mandate on Tuesday in response to a lawsuit from multiple states, including Mississippi, that argued that letting the mandate take effect on Jan. 4 would cause “irreparable injury” to workers who could be fired for failing to comply. In his announcement, Boyce said the university’s mandate will be reinstated if the federal injunction is reversed.
“We will continue to monitor any additional developments in the law, including any appeal of the Georgia decision and other court cases related to the vaccination mandate,” Boyce said in an email announcing the reversal. “As courts make their rulings, this situation could change. If the mandate is reinstated by a court, we will adjust our efforts accordingly.”
The university’s vaccine mandate for those in institutional clinical settings, such as the University of Mississippi Medical Center, was approved separately and will remain in effect.
The judge’s decision now means none of Mississippi’s public universities must require the COVID vaccine. Previously, the Institutions of Higher Learning Board of Trustees voted on Oct. 25 to require university employees to be fully vaccinated...
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