Significance of H.R. 5860 to the Nursing Profession

Forced vaccination is most frequently debated in the health and social care context. The main concern is that health professionals have direct contact with populations at high risk of Covid-19, severe illness, or death due to COVID-19. Hence, the government tried to ethically justify enforced vaccination by quoting the ethical obligation of not harming patients as espoused in many health clauses. Mandatory COVID-19 vaccination may appear especially realistic for health professionals because vaccination of this population may be viewed as important to safeguard the health system’s capacity (Bardosh et al., 2022). The significance of the H.R 5860 is to ensure that unvaccinated health professionals are not forced to stay at home during health pandemics by protecting them from policies that require vaccination as a prerequisite for employment or risk being transferred to departments below their expertise.

Based on the current worries and concerns about health professional “burn-out” due to the pandemic and the potential impact of an under-resourced health workforce, mandatory vaccination laws that mandate vaccination as a prerequisite for employment or access to hospitals may have serious adverse effects on already overburdened health systems (WHO, 2022). Hence, this bill strives to ensure that nurses in the healthcare system are not overburdened when some of their colleagues do not get vaccinations. Similar effects could result from policies requiring the transfer of unvaccinated health workers to locations where the risk is lower, such as crowded living facilities where senior care is provided. Consequently, these policies could also transfer vital health workers from locations that urgently require personnel, especially in widespread community transmission of Covid-19 (Bardosh et al., 2022). Mandatory vaccinations that guarantee high vaccination coverage rates in healthcare contexts lead to more hospitalization, infections, and illness among nurses, negatively impacting the overburdened healthcare system.

For instance, twenty-one states and the District of Columbia already enforced vaccines for health care workers; however, Texas, Arkansas, Tennessee, Montana, Indiana, and Georgia have prohibited some employers from getting vaccines (Burch & Abelson, 2022). Similarly, eighteen states had no healthcare professional vaccine requirements; however, five states, including Michigan, Utah, and Arizona, absolved healthcare organizations from vaccine ban requirements. Early this year, the Supreme Court’s ruling impacted twenty states covered by federal mandates barring Medicare and Medicaid Service Centers from issuing orders. The vaccine regulation affects approximately 10 million workers in over seventy-thousand health facilities, such as long-term care facilities and hospitals (Burch & Abelson, 2022). Consequently, the Supreme Court ruled, at least implicitly, to invalidate state laws that prohibit vaccination requirements at facilities participating in Medicaid and Medicare programs. The enforcement of these vaccinations has led to nurses’ resignation, while reports show that of ten thousand employees, approximately ten nurses were laid off for rejecting vaccinations (Burch & Abelson, 2022). Hence, the H.R 5860 is significant in nursing to help nurses maintain their jobs because losing one nurse could negatively impact the overburdened healthcare system.

Importance of Legislation

This legislation is important because it addresses the need to respect individual liberty and autonomy. Furthermore, it enhances the need for transparency during decision-making which is a fundamental fact in the ethical analysis of mandatory vaccination. Hindering access to work, social life, public transport, and education based on mandatory vaccines breaches human rights and promotes social polarization and stigma, negatively affecting wellbeing and health (WHO, 2022). Mandatory policies may exacerbate economic and health inequalities, lower trust in scientific institutions and government, and reduce compliance with future health measures.

Investigation of the Legislative Process

How Legislation Related to Health Care Comes into Being at either the State or Federal level

In America, legislators introduce legislation in either the Senate or the House of Representatives. Healthcare legislation usually starts from either chamber; furthermore, the House has more responsibility to promote healthcare legislation since it is the direct representative of the citizens than the Senate.

Describe How a Bill Becomes a Law at the State Or Federal Level

First, a representative or senator proposes legislation to either chamber. Second, when the bill is introduced, a committee is assigned to res