In 2021, BCBS Tennessee required up to 900 employees to get vaccinated for COVID as a condition of employment, with exceptions for medical/disability or religious reasons decided on a case-by-case basis. The employees subject to the mandate were “customer facing” positions, and 41 employees were eventually terminated for noncompliance.
On June 28, a federal jury awarded a former employee with the company nearly $700,000 after she proved that her refusal to get vaccinated was based upon a sincerely held religious belief, and BCBS did not prove that it had offered a reasonable accommodation to her. A related class action lawsuit from former employees with BCBST is ongoing.
“We believe our vaccine requirement was the best decision for our employees and members, and we believe our accommodation to the requirement complied with the law,” a BCBST spokesperson told Becker’s.
On Nov. 8, a federal jury ordered Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan to pay nearly $13 million in damages to a former employee who said she was wrongfully terminated for refusing to receive the COVID-19 vaccine. The employee requested an exemption from the vaccine on the basis of her religious beliefs, which was denied by BCBS Michigan, according to court documents filed in 2023.
“In implementing the vaccine policy, Blue Cross designed an accommodation process that complied with state and federal law and respected the sincerely held religious beliefs of its employees,” a BCBSM spokesperson said. “While Blue Cross respects the jury process and thanks the individual jurors for their service, we are disappointed in the verdict. Blue Cross is reviewing its legal options and will determine its path forward in the coming days.”
In September 2023, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission sued UnitedHealthcare over allegations the company discriminated against a fully remote employee by refusing to grant her a religious exemption from the company’s COVID-19 vaccination requirement.
The EEOC alleged that UnitedHealthcare violated Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, which prohibits discrimination because of an individual’s religion and requires employers to reasonably accommodate an employee’s religious observance or practice unless doing so would cause undue hardship.
Following a Supreme Court decision in 2023, the federal government through the EEOC has a greater opportunity than ever at winning these lawsuits, Bloomberg Law reported. The agency has also seen a major increase in vaccine-based religious compliants from employees in recent years.
“We disagree with the EEOC’s case based on the facts and law and we plan to vigorously defend ourselves,” a UnitedHealthcare spokesperson told Becker’s last year. “We continue to respect individual beliefs, while working to ensure the health, well-being and safety of our colleagues and those we are privileged to serve.”
