ORLANDO, Fla. – On Thursday, President Joe Biden unveiled a new and more forceful pandemic response plan ordering new federal vaccine requirements for as many as 100 million Americans- in an all-out effort to curb the surging COVID-19 delta variant.
“It’s unprecedented. We’ve never had a president do something this sweeping that affects so many people so quickly and there are already court challenges; it’s gonna be interesting to see how those play out,” Jim Clark, UCF history professor and News 6 political analyst, said.
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Clark believes vaccine mandates have become a political issue that will influence the 2022 elections and governors up for re-election.
“The Democrats think that the majority of Americans want some kind of a mandate and that this is going to help them going into the ‘22 elections. The Republicans believe that mandates are going to help the Republicans next year in the election,” he explained.
Biden implored Americans during his Thursday address to get the vaccines.
“We’ve made vaccinations free, safe and convenient. The vaccine has FDA approval. Over 200 million Americans have gotten at least one shot. We’ve been patient, but our patience is wearing thin. And your refusal has cost all of us,” Biden said.
The new mandate will require all 9 million federal and contract workers to be vaccinated or face losing their jobs. Private sector companies with over 100 employees must require vaccinations or weekly testing -- businesses that don’t comply will face fines.
“The core ideological resistance is really about when it comes to vaccine hesitancy is about what is my right as an individual versus what is the state’s--what power and what authority do they have to compel me to do certain things? And so if that’s the root ideological concern then those people are still dealing with that concern,” said Dr. Kevin Estep, an assistant professor of health administration and policy at Creighton University.
For some, it may be more about their personal rights than anything else.
“If the main concern is that I feel like I’m being infringed upon; it’s not so much that like I feel like this is unsafe, so if the FDA thing that may be less of a concern, but I feel like no, this is my right as an individual, what’s actually going to increase the hesitancy is if actions are taken that reinforce that narrative,” Estep said.
The mandate will also be required for about 17 million people who work at hospitals that receive Medicare or Medicaid funding.