Texas governor blocks vaccine mandates by private employers

Texas Governor Greg Abbott outlawed vaccine mandates in the second-largest state, setting the stage for a showdown with the federal government in Washington.

In an executive order signed on Oct. 11, 2021, the Republican said “no entity in Texas can compel receipt of a Covid-19 vaccination by any individual, including an employee or consumer, who objects to such vaccination for any reason of personal conscience, based on a religious belief, or for medical reasons, including prior recovery from Covid-19,” according to a statement from Abbott’s office.

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Abbott is pitting himself directly against President Joe Biden, whose own Sept. 9 executive order calls for employers with more than 100 workers to require vaccines or weekly testing once the Occupational Safety and Health Administration creates formal rules. Federal contractors and health-care providers are also supposed to mandate vaccines under Biden’s order.

Many large companies, including Texas-based American Airlines Group and AT&T, are rolling out company-wide vaccine requirements, and health systems such as Houston Methodist have long had them in place.

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Abbott also plans to add the mandates ban to the agenda of an ongoing special session of the state House and Senate, a procedural move that would enable the Republican-controlled legislature to enshrine his executive order into law.