Supreme Court Declines Trio of COVID-19 Vaccine Cases

The Supreme Court in June rejected a trio of cases related to COVID-19 vaccination, USA Today reported. Two of the cases involved the anti-vaccine group Children’s Health Defense, and the other involved We the Patriots and the CT Freedom Alliance.

Children’s Health Defense, a nonprofit activist group chaired by presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr., challenged the emergency authorization of COVID-19 vaccines by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The group argued the vaccines had not been properly evaluated and were ineffective, according to the USA Today report. The 5^th US Circuit Court of Appeals, which is based in New Orleans, Louisiana, ruled that the plaintiffs failed to show how the FDA’s decision to authorize the vaccine harmed them. Consequently, they could not sue the agency.

The other Children’s Health Defense case the Supreme Court declined to hear involved Rutgers University’s requirements surrounding COVID-19 vaccination. The 3^rd US Circuit Court of Appeals, based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, dismissed the suit over procedural issues, according to USA Today.

The Supreme Court also declined a case brought by We the Patriots and the CT Freedom Alliance that challenged Connecticut’s decision in 2021 to cease allowing religious exemptions for vaccine requirements for school children. State officials had cited skyrocketing numbers of such exemptions that increased disease outbreak risks.

The 2^nd US Circuit Court of Appeals, based in New York, New York, sided with Connecticut, according to the article. The appeals court cited overwhelming consensus by other courts that vaccine requirements are not required to include exemptions based on religion. Earlier this year, the Supreme Court passed on considering an appeal from three Republicans fined in 2021 for disregarding a mask mandate on the floor of the US House of Representatives, the report added. The occurrence took place amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Reference

Groppe M. Supreme Court rejects COVID-vaccine cases, including two brought by group founded by RFK Jr. USA Today. June 24, 2024. Accessed June 25, 2024. https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/elections/2024/06/24/anti-vaccine-group-rfk-jr-supreme-court-covid/74194593007/