Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations
Our spring member drive has ended, but it's not too late to give. You have the power to help fund the essential journalism that keeps us all informed. Help us close the gap on our spring fundraising goal! GIVE NOW

Utah GOP lawmakers may seek ‘personal’ exemption to COVID-19 vaccine mandates

In a closed-door caucus Wednesday, Utah House Republicans raised the notion of expanding exemptions to vaccine mandates to include “personal” reasons on top of the religious and medical exemptions.It was not a formal position, but the idea was discussed among GOP lawmakers, some of whom having been inundated by emails, with many people opposing vaccine mandates from President Joe Biden.

 

Rep. Phil Lyman, R-San Juan County, says the Legislature has been slow to act against mandates. He says the situation is “very real” and the Legislature needs to “protect these people” from the mandates.

 

Once the Biden vaccine mandate order is issued, Utah is expected to join many other states in a legal challenge to the mandates.

Tyler Hewitt is the web/social media assistant at UPR. He writes stories every day, updates the website and manages the station's Twitter and Facebook pages. Tyler is a senior at Utah State University and is studying public relations, marketing, and psychology. He loves to write, listen to music, play video games, play tennis and hang out with his fiancé and cat, Juno. He is a great plant dad and recently started collecting vinyl records!