'I will not relent:' What is the scope of Ogles' State of Emergency?
Just hours before Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee announced that he would not extend a State of Emergency due to COVID-19, Maury County Mayor Andy Ogles issued his own for Maury County.
Ogles' symbolic State of Emergency does not prolong the state's 20-month-long status that granted the governor elevated authority to suspend state laws and regulations to combat COVID-19.
Instead Ogles's declaration was initiated in an effort to protect local unvaccinated health care workers, who face losing their jobs if they do not comply with a mandate set in place by the U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. He stated that the possible loss of health care workers could end up straining the health care system in Maury County and the south central region.
"I did not make this decisions lightly," Ogles said during a press conference Thursday. "In the end, I was given no choice and invoked the authority of the lesser magistrate. To defend freedom and liberty and stand against those that seek to impose tyranny. If there were ever a time to unite, to stand together and to fight, it is now."
All employees of CMS-funded institutions must get at least one dose of the vaccine by Dec. 5 and two doses by Jan. 4. The policy follows the Biden administration's direction to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration to require private companies with more than 100 employees to make the vaccine mandatory or obtain a weekly COVID-19 test.
More: Gov. Bill Lee won't extend COVID-19 state of emergency in Tennessee
Consequences for medical center
Leaders at Columbia's Maury Regional Medical Center confirmed that if the medical group does not comply with the order, it would have dire consequences for more than 300,000 people the medical network serves, including the loss of about $100 million in vital funding that supports local services in the southern Middle Tennessee counties of Maury, Marshall, Lawrence, Williamson, Lewis, Giles, Wayne and Hickman.
The local medical center's noncompliance would negatively impact tens of thousands of patients covered by Medicare and TennCare as well as those with commercial insurance provided through companies that require health care providers to be in good standing with CMS, according to Maury Regional Communications Director Rita Thompson.
Those impacted would include many people age 65 and older who would lose the ability to receive care through Maury Regional as well many local employers who offer benefits to their staff through organizations like the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association.
More: Tennessee lawmakers introduce legislation to protect workers from vaccine mandate outcomes
Maury Regional Chief Medical Officer Martin Chaney, who is currently serving as interim CEO, said this week that 72% of the medical center's staff, a total of 2,042 people, are fully-vaccinated or in the process of doing so.
Ogles suggested on Thursday that the remaining 30% of workers would be in a tough position with their job possibly in jeopardy by opting not to get the vaccine.
Of all staff, 93% of its medical staff are fully vaccinated and 296 of 320 participating contractors have been vaccinated.
Chaney said that a significant loss of staff, amid the shortage of available workforce, would have dire consequences for the medical center, which sees 55,000 emergency room visits,1,500 births, 24,000 EMS calls and a total of 300,000 patient encounters each year.
With staff able to submit religious or medical exemptions from the vaccination, Chaney emphasized that the medical center will thoroughly review employees' requests for exemptions.
Linda Whiteside, Chair of Maury County's Health and Environment Committee, said she was not contacted by Ogles prior to declaring the State of Emergency.
"He did not talk to me," Whiteside said. "I think everybody has a right to make their own decision, but I understand the position of the hospital too. It is kind of a mess. I don't know how it is going to come out. I feel sorry about the people who might lose their jobs. I don't know the answer."
Maury County Commissioner Don Morrow said he did not have prior knowledge that the mayor was going to issue the State of Emergency.
How much weight does this hold?
It remains unclear exactly how the mayor's State of Emergency will legally protect regional health care workers, who do not wish to become vaccinated against COVID-19.
However, the order, backed by locally-elected officials, including area mayors and state representatives, serves as a gesture of support for medical workers who do not wish to be vaccinated.
In making the declaration, Ogles encourages health care workers to seek religious exemption and sets a precedent to protect those professionals from "adverse actions and termination."
Ogles's declaration came a week after a demonstration was held in front of the local medical center with members of the community standing in support of those medical workers, who do not wish to be vaccinated.
More: ‘Must abide’: Maury Regional responds to weekend protest of COVID-19 vaccination mandate
Maury County Attorney Daniel Murphy declined to comment on the State of Emergency.
Brent Cooper, the District Attorney General for the 22nd Judicial District, who represents Maury, Giles, Lawrence and Wayne counties, also does not have a clear answer.
He said he is unsure if the federal government's legal authority would be impacted by Ogles' order.
"I don't know if the federal government would have to comply with it," Cooper told The Daily Herald.
The Supremacy Clause of the Constitution of the United States establishes that the Constitution and federal laws constitute the "supreme Law of the Land."
Under preemption, in a situation when federal law conflicts with a state or local law, the federal law will supersede all other laws.
State Reps. Scott Cepicky, R-Culleoka, and Brandon Ogles, R-Franklin, the mayor's cousin, have filed legislation that would protect unvaccinated workers from harassment. They also encourage workers not wishing to become vaccinated to file an exemption.
Ogles holds steady to the Constitution
In announcing the State of Emergency, Ogles continued his long-running stance that there has been "a constant abuse of power by the executive branch of the United States."
He said that states must defend their liberties and freedoms by whatever mechanism they have.
"I have sworn and oath to God and the people of Maury County to protect the constituents of the State of Tennessee and the United States," Ogles said during the press conference last Thursday.
The county mayor emphasizes that it is a right of all individuals under common law to be protected from intimidation, harassment and coercion.
Ogles argues that state sovereignty protects the Constitutional liberties of its citizens within the state.
"In light of the continued States of Emergency and to prevent a shortage of health care workers and subsequent disruptions to critical health care infrastructure, I do herby recognize religions exemptions as provided in state and federal law and the fundamental right of the U.S. condition to be secure," Ogles said.
"I will leverage every tool that I have at my disposal to protect this county and all the residents who reside here. Let it be known that I am resolute in my condition, and I will not relent."
Reach Mike Christen at mchristen@c-dh.net. Follow him on Twitter at @MikeChristenCDH and on Instagram @michaelmarco. Please consider supporting his work and that of other Daily Herald journalists by subscribing to the publication.
This article originally appeared on The Daily Herald: How much weight does Ogles' State of Emergency hold?
