During a May 10, 2021 press conference, Governor Andrew Cuomo announced his intention to propose legislation aimed at stopping discrimination against those who choose to get vaccinated against the COVID-19 virus. Unlike many states that are introducing legislation to prevent discrimination against those who are unvaccinated, this bill would protect those who are vaccinated. The Governor referenced a report that certain summer camps are not allowing campers to attend or staff members to work at the camp if they have received the vaccine. Audio of his remarks is available here.
Governor Cuomo stated, “I want to propose a law that says you can’t discriminate against a person who has a vaccine… I understand the anti-vaccine argument. In my opinion, there is no science to it. There is no science to it. You can have a theory, you can have a belief, but you can’t use that to make public policy without science and without data.”
The Governor did not lay out a timeline for when the legislation could be presented to state legislators, nor did he provide any further specifics regarding his proposal, including whether the bill could impact employers who are choosing to treat vaccinated and unvaccinated employees differently in terms of returning to the physical workplace. Epstein Becker & Green will monitor the proposed legislation and provide updates as they become available.