Can your employer require you to be vaccinated for Covid 19? As the US campaign to distribute coronavirus vaccines continues to ramp up, over 8 million doses have now been administered in the US as of Jan. 11. For awhile only very specific groups of people -- mostly health care workers -- had been cleared to receive a COVID-19 vaccine. Some of those medical professionals were required by their employer to get vaccinated, which lead to the question: Can your employer make you get a COVID-19 vaccine?

The answer is a little more complicated than a simple yes or no. Generally speaking, yes, employers can require employees to receive a vaccine during a pandemic to better ensure the health and safety of their overall staff. However, there are a few exceptions that could exempt you from having to receive a vaccine if your employer makes it mandatory.

Let’s look at what gives employers the right to require their workers to get vaccinated for the coronavirus, as well as what laws are in place to protect you if you have a valid reason for not wanting to get vaccinated yourself. This post is intended to be a general overview and not a source of legal or medical advice. US government says employers can require vaccines.

According to the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, US employers can require employees to receive vaccinations against diseases that have been recognized as pandemics, like COVID-19. The agency's guidance dates back to the H1N1 (aka "swine flu") outbreak of 2009 but was updated in March 2020 to address the coronavirus pandemic specifically. As was the case in 2009, there are two main exceptions to this rule; keep reading for an explanation of both. Americans with Disabilities Act protects some people from mandatory vaccination.

The Americans with Disabilities Act requires employers to provide "reasonable accommodations" to workers with medical conditions that would make them unable to take a vaccine. For example, the FDA has recommended that people with certain allergies not get a coronavirus vaccine, but there may be other reasons as well, such as having a compromised immune system.

Civil Rights Act also protects people with religious beliefs opposing vaccines Even if you don't have a medical reason for not wanting to get vaccinated for COVID-19, you may be able to object on other grounds -- Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 protects people who refuse to take a mandatory vaccine on account of sincerely held religious beliefs. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission does not require membership in a church or even a belief in God to substantiate religious objections: Strongly or sincerely held moral or ethical beliefs are also covered by the law.

What happens if you object to receiving a vaccine when your employer requires it? Just because you have a valid medical or theological objection to receiving a coronavirus vaccine doesn't mean your employer has to let you continue working under the same conditions you've been used to. All of the above objections require employers to make "reasonable accommodations" if an employee objects to receiving a vaccine. Such accommodations could include allowing the employee to work remotely or take a leave of absence.

A 1905 Supreme Court case allows employers to require vaccines.

In 1901, a deadly smallpox outbreak in New England prompted local governments to order mandatory vaccinations for everyone in the area. Some residents, however, objected, and one took it all the way to the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court decided in Jacobson v. Massachusetts (197 U.S.11 (1905), that the government may impose ‘reasonable regulations’ such as a vaccine requirement during a pandemic, for the purpose of protecting the "safety of the general public." It is within the police power of a State to enact a compulsory vaccination law, and it is for the legislature, and not for the courts, to determine.

This court case forms the basis for guidance issued by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, which makes clear that employers may make similar demands of their workers.