AG Knudsen on Vaccine Mandate – House Bill 702 Exceptions

Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen was a popular Talk Back guest on Friday, as the KGVO phone lines were jammed even before his visit began.

Knudsen said the vaccination mandate proposed by President Joe Biden that will be enforced through the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA).

“People don't like these health care decisions being shoved down their throat by the federal government,” said Knudsen. “So, we announced right away that just as soon as this OSHA rule comes down, Montana is going to sue. The good news is there are 25 other Republican state attorneys general that said the same thing.”

Knudsen said he fully expects this case to end up before the U.S. Supreme Court.

“A little less than a week ago, we got a federal judge to issue a stay to put an injunction on that OSHA rule,” he said. “As of right now that that OSHA rule was put down, but it's it has been stayed at the Federal Court level, pending outcome of these several lawsuits. I think very likely that the lawsuits probably will be combined, and I also think very likely we end up at the U.S. Supreme Court on this issue because this is a big constitutional issue.”

Another popular question for the Attorney General referenced House Bill 702, when a caller asked him if an employee of a medical facility may sue over its vaccination requirement.

“This would not be a violation House Bill 702,” he said. House Bill 702 specifically exempted health care facilities from that anti discrimination lawsuit or the threat of lawsuit,” he said. “So this edict from Community Medical Center would not be a violation of House Bill 72. That's very important.”

Knudsen said the state legislature has tied his hands when it comes to a vaccine mandate within a medical facility.

“The legislature did not give me a stick to do anything in these cases,” he said. “This is a self help situation if you're discriminated against in violation of House Bill 702. You have the right to bring a complaint to the Human Rights Bureau, and then depending on what your outcome is there, you can you can sue that employer for wrongful termination.”

Hear the entire conversation by clicking this link.