After a court ruling partially lifting the ban on the federal contractor COVID-19 vaccine mandate takes effect on Oct. 18, agencies will get details from the Safer Federal Workforce task force and the Office of Management and Budget on what comes next.
In anticipation of the “potential narrowing” of the current nationwide injunction on the mandate, the task force and OMB said on Oct. 14 that they will release guidance to agencies on how to handle vaccine protocols moving forward. The steps that the White House outlined could lead to some agencies requiring contractors to be fully vaccinated if they have a federal contract, Executive Vice President for Policy at the Professional Services Council Stephanie Kostro told The Federal Drive.
But some of the details of the guidance for agencies and federal contractors are undefined – for example, if the mandate would apply to all federally contracted employees, or only to select groups. “It’s not clear what the next steps are and what contractors should do as a result … There’s a lot of wiggle room in what it means for contractors,” Kostro said.