Judge Orders Air Force Not to Punish Members Seeking Religious Exemptions to COVID-19 Vaccine Mandate

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Air Force officials were ordered on July 27 not to discipline airmen who are seeking religious exemptions to the militaryโ€™s COVID-19 vaccine mandate.

U.S. District Judge Matthew McFarland, a Trump appointee, entered a preliminary injunction against the military branch.

McFarland two weeks earlier issued a temporary restraining order. He asked the military to make its case as to why he shouldnโ€™t enter a preliminary injunction, a longer-lasting measure.

In a 16-page filing, government lawyers said blocking the military from punishing unvaccinated members โ€œwould interfere with ongoing legal proceedings and would otherwise be improper, particularly in light of significant new developments.โ€

Among the developments, they pointed to U.S. drug regulators authorizing a COVID-19 vaccine made by Novavax. Unlike the three shots previously available in the United States, the Novavax vaccine doesnโ€™t use fetal cells in its development, manufacturing, or production.

โ€œThose class members whose religious objections were based on mRNA technology or the use of fetal-derived cell lines are no longer substantially burdened by the COVID-19 vaccine requirement because this option is now available,โ€ the lawyers said.

Included in the opposition was a declaration from Lt. Gen. Kevin Schneider, the director of staff for the Air Forceโ€™s headquarters. He claimed that unvaccinated members โ€œare at a higher risk of contracting COVID-19 and substantially more likely to develop severe symptoms resulting in hospitalization or deathโ€ and that exempting a large number of airmen โ€œwould pose a significant and unprecedented risk to military readiness and our ability to defend the nation.โ€

Of the 14 members who died with COVID-19 since March 14, according to Schneider, 12 were unvaccinated.

McFarland wasnโ€™t convinced.

โ€œDefendants fail to raise any persuasive arguments,โ€ he said.

Chris West, an attorney representing the plaintiffs, called the ruling โ€œsuch a big winโ€ on Twitter.

Thousands Affected

The Air Force has approximately 497,000 members. Of those, 97.1 percent have received a primary series of a COVID-19 vaccine as of July 11.

Byย Zachary Stieber

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