The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit has won the much-anticipated Multi-District Litigation lottery and will get to decide the merits of the challenges to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) COVID-19 vaccine Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS). Under the ETS, employers with at least 100 employees must adopt a vaccination policy that requires employees to be fully vaccinated or submit to at least weekly testing.  Read the latest on this litigation and what it means for employers.

Puerto Rico Governor Pedro R. Pierluisi has issued an Executive Order (EO) requiring all private sector employers with at least 50 employees to adopt COVID-19 vaccine or testing requirements.

Under EO 2021-075, which is similar in scope to the recent Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) Emergency Temporary Standard, such employers must require their employees to provide:

  • Proof of COVID-19 vaccination;
  • A negative test result at least every seven days; or
  • Certified proof of recovery within the last three months from COVID-19.

For more information about these requirements, read our full article.

The D.C. Council has adopted legislation that “removes one of the biggest obstacles workers say prevents them from getting the COVID-19 vaccine” by ensuring paid time off for both vaccination and recovery from any side effects. D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser is expected to sign the “COVID Vaccination Leave Emergency Amendment Act of 2021” into law. The adopted legislation also expands some benefits of the District of Columbia Family and Medical Leave Act, while extending several protections enacted under prior emergency legislation. Read our full coverage here.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has issued an Interim Final Rule (IFR) establishing the COVID-19 vaccination requirements for staff employed at Medicare- and Medicaid-certified providers and suppliers. The IFR requires covered staff to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 by January 4, 2022, or have received an approved religious or medical exemption or deferral by that date. Read our overview of the rule and next steps for employers.

One day after the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) released an Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) titled “COVID-19 Vaccination and Testing; Emergency Temporary Standard”, a panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit granted a nationwide stay of the OSHA ETS. Read full coverage from our Workplace Safety and Health colleagues.

Less than two months after receiving direction from President Joe Biden, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has issued an Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) covering employers with at least 100 employees. Employers must comply with many of the requirements within 30 days and begin required testing within 60 days of the November 5, 2021, effective date. Read our full coverage here.

In June, California relaxed many of its COVID-19 restrictions, including allowing fully vaccinated individuals to go without a face covering indoors, with limited exception. Also in June, Cal/OSHA passed an amended Emergency Temporary Standard (“ETS”) that allowed for fully vaccinated employees to go without a face covering in most situations.

Read the full article on Jackson Lewis’ California Workplace Law Blog.

The Massachusetts Department of Family and Medical Leave has announced the employer contribution rates and benefit amounts under the state Paid Family and Medical Leave Act (PFMLA) beginning January 1, 2022.

Read more about the changes to the PFMLA effective January 1, 2022.

The District of Columbia has enacted emergency legislation expanding the District’s Universal Paid Leave Act (UPLA). The legislation takes effect on October 1, 2021, and lasts for no more than 90 days.

In addition, the D.C. Mayor signed legislation to make these changes permanent. That legislation is in its 30-day Congressional review period. The legislation also expands eligibility for leave under the District’s Family and Medical Leave Act (D.C. FMLA).  Read more about these developments.

When use or disclosure of an individual’s health information or medical records is at issue, the assumption seems to be, much more often than not, that the HIPAA privacy and security rules apply. This has certainly been the case during the COVID-19 pandemic. Of course, it is true that in most healthcare settings, HIPAA is the primary law governing the use and disclosure of individually identifiable health information. However, HIPAA is often incorrectly applied in workplace settings.

Recently, in an effort to clarify some of these issues as they relate to COVID-19 vaccination data, the Office for Civil Rights (OCR), the agency responsible for enforcing the HIPAA privacy and security rules (the “HIPAA rules”), issued this guidance. We have summarized some of the key points here.