Trial set in suit against county for requiring employees to get Covid vaccination

Santa Clara County is scheduled for a federal trial involving three government workers placed on unpaid leave after refusing a COVID vaccine. Nurses Maria Ramirez and Elizabeth Baluyut and air conditioning mechanic Tom Davis filed a class-action lawsuit, claiming they could not accept vaccination because they believed vaccines were tested on fetal cells from abortions and that abortion is murder. They said they did not comply with Dr. Sara Cody’s August 2021 public health order requiring up-to-date vaccinations for high-risk settings. The county offered religious and medical exemptions, but employees alleged exemptions required applying for different positions that often resulted in demotions. Employees also alleged inconsistent enforcement, including unvaccinated jail guards working with infected inmates. The county argued it is immune from liability for public health decisions, and the mandate was lifted in September 2022. A witness list includes 25 witnesses, including Dr. Sarah Rudman and Sheriff’s Lt. Adam Valle.

"Some (county employees) also have sincerely held religious beliefs, rooted in Scripture, that their bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit and that they cannot place a pharmaceutical substance into their temples, the lawsuit said."

"The county offered religious and medical exemptions, but employees had to apply for completely different positions that were often demotions, the suit said. The county should've offered options like weekly testing, remote work or mask-wearing, the suit said."

"Employees said the vaccine mandate was applied inconsistently - for example, unvaccinated jail guards worked with infected inmates. Ramirez, Baluyut and Davis said they didn't follow Dr. Sara Cody's August 2021 public health order that required up-to-date vaccinations for workers in high-risk settings like hospitals."

"In response to the lawsuit, attorney Nathan Greenblatt said the county "is immune from liability for governmental decisions to promote the public health." The county lifted its vaccine mandate in September 2022, former County Executive Jeff Smith told the court."

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