The COVID-19 pandemic has prompted healthcare providers to change the way they work to continue providing basic services to patients. The CDC has issued preliminary guidance for medical personnel in a variety of clinical and alternative settings for the safe administration of vaccines during the COVID-19 pandemic. COVID-19 vaccinators are required to implement these guidelines for safe vaccination practices, including COVID-19 safety measures (e.g., social distancing, mask wearing, hand hygiene), when providing COVID-19 vaccines. The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practice (ACIP) is comprised of 15 medical and public health experts who develop evidence-based recommendations for vaccine use in the United States. The recommendations serve as public health guidelines for the safe use of vaccines and related biologics. COVID-19 vaccine providers are required to implement all ACIP recommendations adopted by the CDC Director regarding COVID-19 vaccination, including: CDC works closely with public health agencies and private partners to improve and maintain immunization coverage and monitor vaccine safety. One of the tools used to keep rates of vaccine-preventable diseases low is the Immunization Act. National immunization laws include vaccination requirements for children in public and private schools and daycares, students and health care workers, and patients in some facilities. State laws also affect access to immunization services by determining whether the provision of vaccines to patients falls within the purview of certain health professionals. The Public Health Law program provides curated resources to public health practitioners and their legal advice on state immunization laws. In addition to legally protected grounds, employees may have general objections to a COVID-19 vaccination that do not require proper precautions.

“Employers considering making vaccines mandatory should consider this issue very seriously,” said Brett Coburn, an attorney at Alston & Bird in Atlanta. If a significant portion of the workforce refuses to comply, the employer may find itself in the very difficult position of complying with the mandate and terminating all of those employees or deviating from the mandate for some employees, which Coburn says can increase the risk of discrimination complaints. All employers covered by Title VII should ensure that management understands in advance how to recognize this type of harassment. Harassment can occur using electronic means of communication – whether employees are at work, telecommuting or on vacation – as well as face-to-face between employees in the workplace. Harassment of employees on the construction site can also come from contractors, clients or, for example, patients or family members in health care facilities, assisted living facilities and nursing homes. Managers must be aware of their legal obligations and be asked to quickly identify and resolve potential problems before they reach levels of unlawful discrimination. Before administering the COVID-19 vaccine, providers must provide an FDA-approved information sheet for an Emergency Use Authorization (EUA), an FDA vaccine information sheet, or a CDC Vaccine Information Statement (SIV) to each vaccinee, adult caregiver accompanying the recipient, or other legal representative. Trisha Schell-Guy is Acting General Counsel for the New York State Office of Addiction Services and Supports.

In this role, Ms. Schell-Guy provides legal advice, guidance and strategic support to the Commissioner of OASAS at New York University, the agency`s management and all departments of the agency. Prior to her appointment as General Counsel, Ms. Schell-Guy spent 5 years as an associate counsel and 5 years as an associate lawyer for OASAS. Elisabeth Arenales has been Senior Health Policy Advisor to Governor Jared Polis since January 2019. Prior to working for Governor Polis, she served for twenty years as director of the health program at the Colorado Center on Law and Policy. CCLP is Colorado`s barrier-free legal services program and focuses on family economic security. Elisabeth is recognized as an expert in health policy and has a strong track record of protecting, maintaining and expanding access to health care, particularly for low-income Colorads. She has helped lead laws and programs that have increased coverage, reduced barriers to accessing health care, and led to significant changes in Colorado`s healthcare landscape. OCR has issued guidelines that review legal standards and best practices to improve access to COVID-19 vaccination programs and ensure non-discrimination based on race, color, and national origin. Whether information is distributed through pamphlets, online information portals or in person at vaccination clinics, there is a legal requirement that COVID-19 vaccination programs be accessible and free from discriminatory barriers that limit a community`s ability to receive vaccines and boosters.

The new guidelines ensure that businesses covered by civil rights laws understand their obligations under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Section 1557 of the Affordable Care Act, laws that require providers and government-supported health care systems to ensure fair and equitable access to vaccines. Recipients of federal financial assistance include state and local agencies, hospitals, and health care providers who administer vaccines and boosters. www.cdc.gov/vaccines/hcp/admin/storage/toolkit/index.html Instead of the CDC currently developing a separate COVID-19 vaccine information statement for the licensed Pfizer vaccine, the FDA has issued a COVID-19 vaccine fact sheet for recipients and caregiversexternal symbol to include both the FDA-cleared Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine (EUA) and the FDA-approved Biologics License Application (BLA). (licensed) Pfizer-BioNTech COMIRNATY COVID-19 Vaccine. Vaccines have identical formulations. When administering Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine under EEA or BLA approval, providers must provide a copy of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine combination fact sheet to each vaccinee, adult caregiver accompanying the recipient, or other legal representative. From 2009 to 2017, Mr. Greenberg worked at the Federal Administration for Children and Families (ACF) and was deputy secretary of ACF from 2013 to 2017. ACF includes the Office of Refugee Resettlement and a wide range of other programs that support vulnerable and low-income children, families and communities. Previously, Mr. Greenberg was Executive Director of the Georgetown Center on Poverty, Inequality and Public Policy; Executive Director, Poverty Working Group, Center for American Progress; Director of Policy, Centre for Law and Social Policy; and legal counsel to the Western Center on Law and Poverty and Jacksonville Area Legal Aid. Michelle Mello is Professor of Law at Stanford Law School and Professor of Medicine at the Center for Health Policy/Primary Care and Outcomes Research in the Department of Medicine at Stanford University School of Medicine.

She conducts empirical research on issues at the interface of health law, ethics and policy. She has authored over 200 articles on medical liability, public health law, drugs and vaccines, biomedical research ethics and governance, personal health information and other topics.