Parson pushes back against new federal vaccine mandates

Missouri Governor Mike Parson is pushing back on President Biden’s new vaccine mandates that are expected to affect 100 million Americans.

“The Biden Administration’s recent announcement seeking to dictate personal freedom and private business decisions is an insult to our American principles of individual liberty and free enterprise,” stated Parson. “This heavy-handed action by the federal government is unwelcome in our state and has potentially dangerous consequences for working families.

The government’s expansive new rules, announced Thursday, mandate that all employers with more than 100 workers require them to be vaccinated or test for the virus weekly.

“This heavy-handed action by the federal government is unwelcome in our state and has potentially dangerous consequences for working families,” added Parson.

President Biden is also signing an executive order requiring vaccination for all employees of the executive branch and contractors who do business with the federal government. No testing opt-out is expected to be included for the executive branch requirement.

“Vaccination protects us from serious illness, but the decision to get vaccinated is a private health care decision that should remain as such,” said Parson. “My administration will always fight back against federal power grabs and government overreach that threatens to limit our freedoms.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report