![]() for their clients, which are adopted by the clients and filed as their own sworn statements in various proceedings,” he said. “Attorneys routinely draft first-person statements, affidavits, declarations, etc. Mihet said in an email that “Liberty Counsel provides free assistance to help employees articulate their own religious beliefs” and that the practice is not “improper.” Written in the first person, the statement asked for a vaccine waiver so “I am not forced to sin and stain my conscience.” The statement noted the employee’s concern with fetal cell lines, then added an idea the employee hadn’t mentioned: an objection to “any other product or medication that is connected to abortion in the same way.” The employee’s email and Mihet’s response were forwarded multiple times, eventually landing in the inbox of an Orange County Sheriff’s Department employee. ![]() “Do not put anything on it that identifies me or that the statement came from me. “Cut and paste the statement below, assuming it correctly states your religious beliefs,” Horatio Mihet wrote. Others lifted language from anti-vaccination groups such as Children’s Health Defense - chaired by Robert F. Several letters reviewed by The Times included statements identical to those on the website of Defending the Republic, a Texas organization led by Sidney Powell, a conspiracy theorist and lawyer connected to former President Trump. But the majority of exemption requests reviewed by The Times were copied from letters posted on websites of evangelical churches, conservative legal groups and fee-based organizations such as True Hope Ministry. Some employees at the DWP, the Orange County Sheriff’s Department and two Southern California school districts cited Scripture and described their relationships with their faith. ![]() ![]() They also reveal a cottage industry that has sprung up to help people justify decisions to refuse vaccination. The documents, from four public employers, show just how complicated it can be to review vaccine exemption requests. Through public records requests, The Times amassed more than 2,200 pages of emails, letters and other records related to religious waivers from vaccine rules. _įollow AP’s coverage of the pandemic at and. _Īdrian Sainz contributed to this report from Memphis, Tennessee. And gym patrons and employees must wear facial coverings at all times, except when in the swimming pool or shower, the health department said. Schools are strongly encouraged to suspend all school-related, close-contact sports. Late Friday, the Shelby County Health Department issued an order requiring restaurants to limit occupancy to 50% and close at 10 p.m. They must be safe and effective before approval for use by the U.S. Potential vaccines are still in the trial phase and have not been approved. The push could begin as early as next month, when federal officials say the first vaccine may be authorized for emergency use and immediately deployed to high-risk groups, such as health care workers. history - a monumental undertaking that must distribute hundreds of millions of doses, prioritize who’s first in line and ensure that people who get the initial shot return for the necessary second one. With a COVID-19 vaccine drawing closer, public health officials across the country are gearing up for the biggest vaccination effort in U.S. The rule will exempt students who enrolled only online and are not participating in in-person learning, and also will allow for medical or religious exemptions. Meanwhile, the University of Tennessee on Friday adopted a new immunization rule that allows the school to require students to have both the flu and coronavirus vaccinations. Students in private schools particularly saw a higher use of the religious exemption. The report hypothesized families were likely using that exemption “in lieu of a personal philosophical exemption,” even though doing so could result in a penalty of perjury. However, the report said there’s been a noticeable uptick in the number of families using the religious exemption. The health department has said first responders will be the state’s top priority during the vaccine’s initial distribution phases, with health care workers being the next priority.Īt the end of the 2019-20 school year, 95% of Tennessee kindergarteners were reported to be fully immunized, according to the health department’s latest annual report. In the interim, the state’s top health officials are working on developing a distribution plan once a coronavirus vaccine is available. Lawmakers won’t consider taking up the proposal until the General Assembly kicks off its 2021 session in January.
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