Houston Methodist staffers' lawsuit challenging hospital's COVID vaccine mandate dismissed

Rebecca Falconer
·1 min read

A federal judge on Saturday dismissed a lawsuit brought by 117 Houston Methodist staff over the hospital's policy requiring all staff to be vaccinated against COVID-19.

Driving the news: The staff had argued that the mandate was unlawful. But U.S. District Judge Lynn Hughes said in her ruling, "This is not coercion. Methodist is trying to do their business of saving lives without giving them the COVID-19 virus. It is a choice made to keep staff, patients and their families safer."

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  • The judge noted that the federal government advised last that companies can require workers to get coronavirus vaccines.

Of note: The hospital in Houston, Texas, suspended 178 employees without pay for 14 days last Tuesday for failing to comply the mandate.

  • Hughes earlier this month denied the plaintiffs' request for a temporary restraining order to block the suspension.

  • The judge said the public interest in "caring for patients during a pandemic far outweighs protecting the vaccination preferences of 116 employees" and noting the staff were "jeopardizing" their own health" and that of others.

What they're saying: Houston Methodist said in an emailed statement that it was pleased the judge had dismissed the "frivolous lawsuit," which made false claims that COVID-19 vaccines weren't safe, despite the administering of over 300 million doses and falls in positive cases and hospitalizations proving they do work.

  • Marc Boom, president and CEO of Houston Methodist said in the statement: "We can now put this behind us ... All our employees have now met the requirements of the vaccine policy and I couldn't be prouder of them."

  • Read the judge's ruling in full, via DocumentCloud:

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Editor's note: This a breaking news story. Please check back for updates.

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