Alabama governor orders state agencies to fight federal vaccine mandates

Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey (R) signed an executive order on Monday directing state agencies to not comply with federal COVID-19 vaccine mandates.

Ivey in a statement criticized President Biden’s new vaccine mandates, calling them an “outrageous overreach” while saying Alabamians “must have the choice” of whether they want to get the shots.

She called on state agencies to “fight the overreaching COVID-19 vaccine mandates from the federal government.”

“The federal government’s outrageous overreach has simply given us no other option, but to begin taking action, which is why I am issuing this executive order to fight these egregious covid-19 vaccine mandates. Alabamians — and Americans alike — should and must have the choice to roll up their sleeves to get this shot and certainly not forced by government,” she said.

“While President Biden laughs at the idea of protecting your freedoms, I will continue fighting for Alabama businesses and their employees,” she added.

Under Ivey’s executive order, state agencies are banned from penalizing employees or businesses for noncompliance with the federal mandates, which stipulate that businesses with at least 100 employees require workers to get vaccinated or undergo weekly testing for the coronavirus.

“I am adamantly opposed to federal mandates related to the covid-19 vaccine and adamantly opposed to state mandates related to the covid-19 vaccine, plain and simple. As long as I am your governor, the state of Alabama will not force anyone to take a covid-19 vaccine,” Ivey said.

The Alabama Democratic Party said in a statement that vaccine mandates are “nothing new,” adding that states and the federal government mandate other vaccinations to protect people, The Associated Press reported. 

Ivey’s executive order comes just days after Republican officials in multiple states spoke out against the Biden administration over federal COVID-19 vaccine mandates and called for the president to turn back from the requirements they say are unconstitutional violations of Americans’ rights.