PHOENIX , — Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich announced Thursday that he will sue to stop the Biden administration’s new mandate that large employers force their workers to be vaccinated against COVID-19, or to undergo weekly testing beginning in January.
According to the Republican, the suit against the new Occupational Safety & Health Administration regulations that target employers employing 100 or more workers will be filed Friday.
Brnovich stated in a statement that “when faceless government bureaucrats dictate how you should inject your body, that’s not the safest thing in the world.” “The government does not get to be your nanny and certainly not your doctor.
Republican Gov. Doug Ducey is a supporter COVID-19 vaccines but not mandates and supports Brnovich’s plan to sue.
Ducey stated that this was a direct attack not only on personal liberty, but also the very companies – small and large – that help keep our country, state and economy running. “After the problems that COVID-19 has caused for individuals, businesses, and current workforce shortages, it is important that the administration assist them in getting back on their feet, rather than imposing additional regulatory burdens.”
Ducey stated that the rule was passed without public input, and that it was similar to taxation without representation.
A senior Biden administration official stated that the new rules were necessary to protect worker safety in a background briefing Wednesday evening.
The official stated that a virus that has claimed the lives of more than 750,000 Americans and is causing more than 70,000 cases each day is a serious health risk that presents a serious threat to workers.
Raul Grijalva (a Democrat from parts of Arizona) called the regulations “welcome” because they will prevent businesses from suffering COVID-19 outbreaks in their workforces.
Grijalva stated in a statement that COVID-19 is the leading cause of death in Arizona. He also praised the efforts to reduce transmission in the workplace. “People are not comfortable risking their lives or those of their families by working in unsafe conditions. This must change.
Arizona already faces problems regarding how it supervises workplace safety. Last month, the Biden administration threatened to revoke the authority of Arizona and two other Republican-controlled states to handle their own workplace safety enforcement because they have refused to adopt rules to protect health care workers from COVID-19.
Brnovich will file the lawsuit over federal vaccine and testing mandates. In September, Brnovich filed a suit alleging that the government is violating the Constitution’s equal protection clause by treating citizens differently to people who cross the U.S.–Mexico border illegally. These people are given vaccines, but they are not required to inoculate.
Next week will see a hearing on Brnovich’s request for a preliminary order in this case.
Other developments
On Thursday, the Arizona Department of Health Services reported an additional 3,352 COVID-19 confirmed cases and 17 deaths. This brings the total state’s totals up to 1,179,072 cases, and 21,290 deaths since the outbreak.
The number of COVID-19-related hospitalizations fell slightly as 1,828 patients with the virus were admitted to hospital beds on Wednesday, according to the coronavirus dashboard.
Johns Hopkins University data shows that Arizona’s daily average number of new cases per day has increased from 2,131 per person on Oct. 19, to 2,684 on Nov. 2.
Over the past two weeks, the average daily death rate has increased from 39 per Day on Oct. 19, to 40 per Day on Nov. 2.
The Pinal County Board of Supervisors voted in favor of a $3.3million federal grant to provide COVID-19 vaccinations to the underserved population in the semi-rural county of south-central Arizona.
Wednesday’s vote by the board was 3-2 to approve the grant. Supervisor Jeffrey McClure reversed his Sept. 1 vote against the grant. McClure’s request for reconsideration led to Wednesday’s re-vote.
Kevin Cavanaugh, Supervisor, voted again against the grant. He said that “it’s a waste to hire a vaccine equity coordonnator… when this could be done much better at a local level.”
