The Maine Supreme Judicial Court on Thursday sided with the state Board of Emergency Medical Services in a dispute over the COVID-19 vaccination requirement for emergency medical responders.
The Law Court’s ruling upholds a lower court’s dismissal of a lawsuit brought by a group of more than 100 plaintiffs claiming that the Maine EMS, a bureau in the Department of Public Safety, overstepped its statutory authority by requiring EMS workers be vaccinated against COVID-19.
The Law Court found that the administration followed the appropriate procedure in 2021, when the rule was first adopted by the Maine EMS Board that August.
The board took action after hearing several hours of testimony from dozens of EMS workers, many of whom said the mandate eliminates medical autonomy and will force some to leave their jobs at a time when staffing shortages are already prevalent.
The plaintiffs argued that the directive should have been considered a major substantive rule, requiring the approval …