Congressmen Steven Palazzo (MS-04), Trent Kelly (MS-01), and Michael Guest (MS-03) joined over 150 Republicans to support a resolution under the Congressional Review Act to halt President Biden’s vaccine mandate for Medicare and Medicaid providers.
“I was happy to join this effort and continue my charge against federal COVID-19 vaccine mandates,” said Congressman Steven Palazzo. “Our nation’s healthcare workers have carried the lion’s share of the pandemic’s burden and President Biden is thanking them by threatening their jobs. Forcing our frontline workers to choose between a their values and their livelihoods is unconstitutional and dangerous. We have all heard of the labor shortages our nation is facing, and the healthcare industry is no different. Forcing Medicare and Medicaid providers into such a challenging position is not only a flagrant misuse of power, it could also put lives at risk.”
“Since the Coronavirus Pandemic started, we have called on our frontline workers for help and they have delivered all across this great Nation,” Congressman Trent Kelly said. “These heroes deserve the right to make the best possible choices regarding their personal health.”
“After diligently working through one of the worst pandemics this country has seen, this Administration is threatening the jobs of those front-line workers who saved hundreds of thousands of American lives,” Congressman Michael Guest said. “Our healthcare workers, law enforcement officers, and other first responders have given their time and wellbeing to keep our country healthy and safe over the last 18 months. They have earned the right to decide for themselves whether to receive the vaccine, and we must fight against this Administration to defend that right.”
The Congressional Review Act process is the legal process whereby Congress can overturn an Administration regulation, once it has been properly noticed. “Proper notice” occurs once a regulation is printed in the Federal Register and received by the Clerks of the House and Senate. The CMS vaccine mandate regulation was printed in the Federal Register on November 5, 2021. It was noted as received by the Senate Clerk on December 1, 2021, and by the House Clerk on December 9, 2021. Now that all three of those notices have been received, a CRA receives privilege in the House if the Minority Leader brings it up as a “privileged resolution,” which means the House must bring the legislation to the floor for a vote.
This resolution was introduced in the House of Representatives on December 9, 2021. A companion bill has been introduced in the Senate by Senator Roger Marshall (R-KS).
