Lawsuit Filed by Over 500 Healthcare Workers in Illinois Ends in $10M Settlement After Refusal to Grant Religious Exemption for COVID-19 Vaccine
A group of nearly 500 healthcare workers is slated to receive a $10 million payout in a first-of-its-kind settlement challenging their hospital’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate.
The coalition of workers at NorthShore University HealthSystem in Illinois filed their suit in October 2021, alleging the healthcare facility was illegally refusing to grant religious exemptions to the mandate. The July 29 settlement agreement by the state’s Northern District Court means 473 current and former healthcare workers are soon to receive compensation for being denied religious exemptions from the healthcare system’s vaccine requirement.
Liberty Counsel, the legal group representing 13 plaintiffs, said the settlement should “serve as a strong warning to employers across the nation that they cannot refuse to accommodate those with sincere religious objections to forced vaccination mandates,” according to a statement from Horatio Mihet, vice president of legal affairs at the group.
