Title: Keeping Our COVID–19 Heroes Employed Act
Policy area: Health

Summary:
Keeping Our COVID-19 Heroes Employed Act
This bill exempts essential workers from COVID-19 vaccination requirements imposed by the federal government and contractors, public entities that received federal COVID-19 relief funds, and private entities that received any federal funds.
An essential worker is an individual who was deemed to be essential or exempted from response measures during the COVID-19 pandemic by a state, tribe, or territory.

[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 3079 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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117th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 3079

  To exempt essential workers from Federal COVID-19 vaccine mandates.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                            October 26, 2021

 Mrs. Blackburn (for herself, Mr. Inhofe, Ms. Lummis, Mr. Hagerty, Mr. 
 Braun, Mr. Johnson, Mr. Tuberville, and Mr. Marshall) introduced the 
 following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on 
                 Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To exempt essential workers from Federal COVID-19 vaccine mandates.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Keeping Our COVID-19 Heroes Employed 
Act''.

SEC. 2. EXEMPTION FROM VACCINE MANDATES.

    (a) In General.--Any requirement imposed by an entity described in 
subsection (b) that individuals be vaccinated against COVID-19 shall 
provide for an exemption from such requirement for all essential 
workers.
    (b) Entities Described.--An entity described in this subsection is 
any of the following:
            (1) The Federal Government.
            (2) A public or private Federal contractor.
            (3) A private entity receiving Federal funds.
            (4) A public entity receiving funding under the Coronavirus 
        Preparedness and Response Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2020 
        (Public Law 116-123), the Families First Coronavirus Response 
        Act (Public Law 116-127), the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and 
        Economic Security Act (Public Law 116-136), the Paycheck 
        Protection Program and Health Care Enhancement Act (Public Law 
        116-139), division M or N of the Consolidated Appropriations 
        Act, 2021 (Public Law 116-260), or the American Rescue Plan Act 
        of 2021 (Public Law 117-2), as a condition for retaining such 
        funds or receiving future disbursements of such funds.
    (c) Essential Workers Defined.--For purposes of this section, the 
term ``essential worker'' means an individual--
            (1) whom a relevant State, Indian Tribe, or territory 
        deemed essential during the response to the COVID-19 pandemic; 
        or
            (2) who was exempt from any restrictions in response to the 
        COVID-19 pandemic imposed by a relevant State, Indian Tribe, or 
        territory.
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