Commerce Sec'y: Vaccine Mandate Is the ‘Cheapest Thing that We Could Do to Get Americans Back to Work’
"Nobody is being forced" to get vaccinated, Raimondo says
The vaccine mandate President Biden announced to cover much of the American workforce isn't only about workers safety.
But rather, it's also the fastest and cheapest way to get the US economy back to a full recovery, according to Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo.
The president last week used an address to the nation to roll out new plans and mandates intended to stem the growth of new COVID-19 cases across the country.
Biden is very eager to put vaccinations of Americans back into high gear, as the nation has begun recently to see a frightening steep rebound in COVID cases of after tapering off sharply earlier this summer as a result of the Biden administration's aggressive vaccination efforts.
Perhaps the most significant mandate Biden unveiled is an emergency rule to mandate that all US employers that employ 100 or more workers — in all, covering more than 80 million workers across the United States — all are either fully vaccinated, or must show a negative COVID test weekly.
“I see this as a huge step forward to getting people back to work and finally recovering, having this economy recover. It takes guesswork out. It is probably the most quickest, easiest, cheapest thing that we could do to get Americans back to work,” said Raimondo, the former Democratic governor of Rhode Island. “You know, getting vaccinated is cheap, it’s free, it’s effective, and it is the single biggest thing that’s holding back our economy right now. So I am proud of the president for doing it. Many businesses are lauding the decision. And I think we’re going to see a big impact, a positive impact in our economy on account of this decision.”
The employee vaccine mandate actually should solve a number of issues plaguing the US economy, Raimondo said.
“We have challenges in the economy, supply chains, worker shortages, you know, people still afraid to fly, people afraid to go back to work. All of that can be alleviated if everybody gets vaccinated,” she said. “So yes, there’s a challenge now with people not going back to work. A lot of that because people are afraid to go back to work. So I actually think in the short term and definitely in the long term, this is unquestionably going to help our economy.
“It's probably the single most important thing we can do to help our economy, get people back to work, kids back to school, people out and about again. So no, I think benefits vastly outweigh any potential cost to the labor shortage,” the secretary added.
“Nobody is being forced”
Furthermore, “nobody is being forced” to get vaccinated, Raimondo said.
“Nobody is being forced. In fact if you don’t get vaccinated, you just have to get tested on a weekly basis,” she said. “But the reality is the science is crystal clear on this. Get vaccinated. These vaccines are incredibly effective. They're effective. They’re free. They work. It's unacceptable, it is unacceptable now that people aren’t getting vaccinated. We need our kids in schools, we need schools open. We need people to get back to work, we need people flying on airplanes, we need people in restaurants. We have too many Americans still out of work, and this is a simple, effective shot in the arm if you will that our economy needs and there’s no reason not to get vaccinated at this point in time.
“That being said, you are not being forced. You can work from home, you can get tested on a weekly basis. So I just think this is just smart public policy and great leadership by the president,” Raimondo added.
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