Thread by @IAmNickReynolds

There's a handful of medical professionals testifying before Joint Labor/Health this morning opposing vaccine mandates at Banner Health. Says it's created an environment of "tension and hostility."

Group includes an anesthesiologist, an ICU nurse, and a children's dentist.

Said professionals say mandates and ensuing climate are causing "serious psychological and emotional distress" among unvaccinated staff. Could exacerbate staffing crisis.

"Why would we exclude highly qualified individuals from the workforce?"

Live:

Sen. Lynn Hutchings said she would do whatever she could to help their cause. Rep. Bob Wharff, who has downplayed COVID and called it a "man-made" virus on social media, told them to "call their bluff."

"To have administrators with zero experience in the medical field setting policies that are outside [their area of expertise... To me they're traveling down the wrong lane," Wharff said.

Rep. Cathy Connolly asked the doctors to not use terms like "medical fascists" to describe their colleagues who are following the science.

Notes we have numerous vaccine requirements already -- including polio -- and that data supports vaccination as best practice.

"How many people in Wyoming have died of COVID?" Connolly asks. "And how many have died of the vaccine?"

"We don't know," one of the docs said.

Argues numbers are being skewed.

The testimony here is in and out. For context, the Labor/Health Committee has taken a significant right turn in the most recent Legislature, which took hold amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

"Thanks for coming in today and showing me it's not just my imagination," said Rep. Pepper Ottman.

Expressed concern about exacerbating staffing issues in medical facilities that could come from vaccine mandates in those facilities.

Clarence Styvar said that as an enlisted member of the military, VA gave people vaccines where there wasn't disclosure what people were given.

Anyway, here's what's in it. portal.ct.gov/Coronavirus/Co…

And that's all. No pro-vaccine docs testified. They signed up to present independently, this wasn't a formal hearing.

Not that it would have mattered. This committee has already sponsored legislation to oppose such mandates, and WY is looking at a special session to fight them.

There's realistic considerations.

In later testimony, Eric Boley, of the Wyoming Hospital Association, said the Biden vaccine mandate has been "problematic" for the medical sector's employment numbers.

Says they will use federal funding for traveling staff to shore that up.

That's unsustainable though... Josh Hannes, also of the WHA, said that the higher wages for travel nurses breeds animosity. And right now, many of the firms they work with have "thousands" of open positions due to an exodus of people from the HC industry, generally.

Bouchard asks Boley to weigh in on groups like Banner pre-empting the Biden admin and its impact on staffing.

Boley notes there are other factors in people leaving and that, industry-wide, support for vaccines is very high.

Bouchard now talking about how people who have had COVID -- him included -- are now "immune." Says his 84-year-old mother has a "great immune system" because she grew up without running water. Speculates hospitals are lying.

Boley objects to all those points.

"Sooner or later, something's going to come out," Bouchard said.

Boley says employees are "busting their butts" to care for people, are stressed to the max. Said what Bouchard heard from a state employee is irrelevant to the work of hospitals.

"We are not lying to anybody."

Update: I came up the hill to attend in-person. An interesting cross-section of people here, including former State Rep. Scott Clem.

Most of the morning has been spent discussing vaccine mandates. Was not on the agenda, and only opponents have been here today.

There's some staff from Wyoming Medical Center testifying against mandates now discussing exemptions.

Said they haven't had any options to apply for exemptions -- apparently the only one they allow is for legitimate concern of anaphylactic shock, according to them.

And there's another group up. We had four anti-mandate medical employees this morning, then four WMC staff members, and now we have another four testifying against the mandate.

One, a Banner employee from Worland, said she resigned over the vaccine mandate at that facility.

"This is a fight for truth," one employee said. Said there needs to be an opportunity to "learn from each other" and learn more than one side of the issue about a vaccine she said was "questionable at best."

Unless that dialogue takes place, she said, "there is no point in staying with an entity that isn't willing to listen."

Mike Pyatt, a local conservative activist, says he's hosting a town hall on this topic. Said this is a "liberty issue," and that the constitution allows people the liberty not to get the shot.

"This is tyranny, folks."

Link to Pyatt's Town Hall: libertysplace4uwy.com

Another person (a naturopath) saying that a local pharmacy is refusing ivermectin to someone she knows who wants it. Has to go out of state to get their hands on it, she said.

"How is it about public safety if you don't even get to try?"

Adds her child has not received any vaccinations. Said some mothers have told her that her child "is not safe to play with" because of it, and is separated.

"You're asking an entire population to face that."

The final two speakers up: a Wyoming Medical Center employee (a speech pathologist), and Rep. Scott Clem, a pastor.

"Tyrants don't follow the law," he said.

"As politicians, you're used to hyperbole," he adds. "This isn't hyperbole. This is reality."

Clem said one member of his congregation, an anesthesiologist, won't take the shot, and may quit over it, as will others. Said that could interrupt the hospital's ability to perform surgeries.

"You're supposed to protect and secure our rights against tyrants, including the one in the White House right now," he said.

Said things will get bad without action.

"You're not gonna have some crazy left-wing nuts out there burning down businesses and rioting and things like that," he said. "Normal sane people are driven to a point where they have to do something. And that's where we're at."

Said if government doesn't do its job, "the people will do it themselves."

Urges lawmakers to call a special session to address the mandates. If not, the governor should. "To sit back and let the courts handle it... civil unrest will happen by then."

A physician's assistant from Gillette suggested the vaccine isn't effective, could cause ppl to become complacent in their prevention protocols.

Connolly asked whether it makes a difference that all of the severe COVID cases are among the unvaccinated. The PA says the opposite.