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BREAKING: Gov. Abbott bans COVID-19 vaccine mandates by any 'entity in Texas'


 

Governor Greg Abbott has just banned any and all entities from issuing vaccine mandates in the state of Texas via a new executive order:

Abbott is also submitting a request to the Texas legislature to make this law:

I, GREG ABBOTT, Governor of the State of Texas, by the authority vested in me by Article III, Section 40, and Article IV, Section 8, of the Texas Constitution, do hereby present the following additional subject to the 87th Texas Legislature, Third Called Session, for consideration:

Legislation establishing that no entity in Texas can compel receipt of a COVID-19 vaccine by any individual, including an employee or a 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.

"The COVID-19 vaccine is safe, effective, and our best defense against the virus, but should remain voluntary and never forced," Abbott said in a press release Monday.

Abbott's executive order prohibits "any entity" in the state from compelling an individual to receive a COVID-19 vaccine "who objects to such vaccination for any reason of personal conscience."

The order applies to both employees and consumers who refuse to receive the vaccine due to "religious belief, or for medical reasons, including prior recovery from COVID-19."

The order will also "supersede any conflicting order" that has already been made by local jurisdictions, authorizing the "maximum fine" allowed under Texas law for any entity that fails to comply with the order.

Abbott also issued a message to the state's Senate and House of Representatives formally requesting the legislature to consider drafting legislation codifying a similar order into law.

The governor's move may have come in response to President Biden's September executive order that will require employers with more than 100 workers to require the vaccine or submit to weekly testing for the virus.

"In yet another instance of federal government overreach, the Biden Administration is now bullying many private entities into imposing COVID-19 vaccine mandates, causing workforce disruptions that threaten Texas's continued recovery from the COVID-19 disaster," Abbott said of that order at the time.

Currently, 52% of Texas residents are fully vaccinated against COVID-19. 

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