Murphy Statement on Biden Administration’s New Vaccine Mandate Rule

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today Rep. Greg Murphy, M.D. (NC-03) issued the following statement in response to the Biden Administration's announcement that the COVID-19 vaccine mandate for businesses with over 100 employees will take effect on January 4, 2022. Businesses who do not comply with the mandate will be threatened with thousands of dollars in fines, and citizens will potentially have to choose between medical freedom and their livelihoods.

"Today's announcement is a tragic display of federal overreach that shows a failure to understand action and subsequent consequences," said Murphy. "PresidentBiden's vaccine mandate will put 84 million American employees and 17 million health care workers at risk of losing their jobs. That is a disaster, especially as our nation is already confronting massive labor shortages and supply chain issues as a result of President Biden's failed policies. Consequences of the Biden mandate could include market unemployment, loss of medical benefits and subsequent poverty. It is well known that poverty, as a social determinant of health, often leads to sickness, morbidity and possible mortality. It's also worth noting that President Biden himself opposed the idea mandating the COVID-19 vaccine before it became politically expedient for him to do so.

The bottom line is that I completely sympathize with the mission to get people vaccinated and I have ardently encouraged people to do so, but mandating the vaccine is a violation and destruction of the doctor-patient relationship in an attempt to make medicine a government-citizen directive. 70% of U.S. adults are already fully vaccinated without a mandate, and whether the President likes it or not, the American people will ALWAYS have the freedom and the right to make their own health care decisions. I fear this mandate will further exacerbate vaccine hesitancy. People should talk to their doctors about the safety and efficacy of the vaccine and come to a decision without government force. As usual, this Administration is making emotional decisions without considering the far reaching implications of their actions. I oppose vaccine mandates in all forms and will continue to fight to secure our constitutionally protected rights for all Americans."

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