IndyStar: “IU noted that six other vaccines are already required on campuses by state law, with exemptions.”
INGOP’s identity crisis is in freefall, governing only by extreme partisanship and at the expense of Indiana’s future
INDIANAPOLIS – The Indiana Democratic Party, the organization that advocates for the future of Indiana and its families, today called out Attorney General Todd Rokita for using his elected office to carry out the bidding of the Indiana Republican Party’s extreme partisanship and rhetoric, one that’s damaging the state in the process. This time, Rokita joined members of the statehouse supermajority by claiming public universities should not require students, faculty, and staff to be vaccinated ahead of the fall semester — despite universities requiring vaccination records for other diseases. The attorney general’s advisory opinion is non-binding, but it continues to highlight how Todd Rokita is campaigning for his next job and not fulfilling the duties of this office.
Rokita’s advisory opinion is another example of how the Indiana Republican Party is experiencing an identity crisis. Hoosiers remember Rokita pledging his allegiance to an ex-president and carrying out cultural crusades that are rooted in misinformation and shallow rhetoric. They also remember a Republican Party that voted against President Joe Biden’s American Rescue Plan – which provided $5.8 billion in relief to Indiana and its communities and $250 million in broadband internet expansion – and carried out an agenda targeting Indiana’s cities and towns, harassing members of Indiana’s Black Legislative Caucus, and attacking their own Repubican governor (at least three times now).
Republicans have forgotten who they are, but it’s going to be the Indiana Democrats who will always deliver for Hoosier families. Democrats already supported the American Rescue Plan and plan to travel the state to deliver the good news this law is bringing to every one of Indiana’s 92 counties and their communities.
Here’s how the latest INGOP scuffle is playing out statewide:
NPR: AG Rokita: Indiana University COVID-19 Vaccine Policy Violates State Law
WWBL: Attorney General Rokita says Indiana University’s COVID-19 Vaccine Policy Runs Afoul of State Law
IndyStar: “The move has given birth to two letters from Indiana Republicans who oppose it; questions about whether or not it flies in the face of recent legislation barring vaccine passports from state entities; and concerns that the courts may ultimately be called upon to make a final decision.
But legal experts say IU and the hundreds of other colleges and universities are free to require vaccines. And any challenges will need to be based on more than just personal feelings to stand up in court.” […]
“But Elizabeth C. Tippett, an associate professor at the University of Oregon School of Law, called arguments against these mandates based on FDA approval “far fetched” considering the widespread distribution of vaccines.”
“Local opposition to the rule has also centered around recently passed legislation which prohibits state and local units of governments from requiring employees to prove they have received the COVID-19 vaccine.
Ross Silverman, professor of health policy and management with the Indiana University Fairbanks School of Public Health and McKinney School of Law, says the confusion surrounding the law can be cleared up by the language of the bill itself.
The legislation “prohibits the state or a local unit from issuing or requiring a COVID-19 ‘immunization passport’ (a document concerning an individual’s immunization status).” Indiana law defines a “unit” as county, municipality, or township. That doesn’t include colleges and universities.” […]
“IU noted that six other vaccines are already required on campuses by state law, with exemptions.”
Associated Press: Indiana attorney general attacks IU’s COVID-19 vaccine order
The Hill: Indiana AG says university mandating vaccines violates new state law
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