Summary

Nullifies two Biden Administration executive orders that required COVID-19 safety protocols for federal contractors and COVID-19 vaccination for federal employees, and bars the Department of Labor from issuing rules that would force employers to require COVID-19 vaccination or to test unvaccinated employees. It also forbids HHS from requiring Medicare or Medicaid participating health care providers to mandate COVID-19 vaccination or testing of their employees and prevents penalizing providers for not imposing such requirements. The provisions remove specific federal vaccine and testing requirements for federal employees and contractors, limit Labor Department rulemaking power on workplace vaccine/testing mandates, and block HHS from conditioning Medicare/Medicaid participation on provider employee vaccine or testing mandates.

• Voids Executive Order 14042 (contractor COVID-19 safety protocols) and Executive Order 14043 (federal employee COVID-19 vaccination requirement).
• Bars the Secretary of Labor from issuing any rule requiring employer COVID-19 vaccine mandates or testing of unvaccinated employees.
• Prohibits HHS from requiring Medicare/Medicaid participating providers to mandate employee COVID-19 vaccination or testing.
• Forbids penalizing Medicare/Medicaid providers for failing to impose vaccine mandates or testing requirements on staff.
• Does not create new funding, and does not specify exceptions, timelines, or amendments to other statutes beyond the stated prohibitions.
• Does not expressly stop private employers or state/local governments from setting their own vaccine or testing policies, except where federal funding conditions would otherwise apply.
• Removes specific federal levers used to enforce COVID-19 workplace vaccine or testing requirements for certain federal workforce, contractors, and federally funded health-care providers.