Gov. Kathy Hochul said Wednesday that she doesn't believe health care workers in New York should be able to cite a religious exemption to avoid getting the COVID-19 vaccine.
The governor, who held a briefing on the status of the coronavirus in the state, was reacting to a court decision temporarily upholding the rights of some health care workers to refuse the vaccine on religious grounds.
On Tuesday, a federal judge in Utica issued what's known as a temporary restraining order against the portion of the state's vaccine mandate that does not allow for religious exemptions.
Hochul said her health department deliberately excluded religious exemptions from the mandate, which requires all health care workers to be vaccinated by Sept. 27. She said while the state's attorneys will be arguing the case in court on Sept. 28, her personal opinion is that a religious exemption is not a legitimate excuse.
"I'm not aware of a sanctioned religious exemption from any organized religion, in fact, they are encouraging the opposite," Hochul said. "Everybody from the pope on down is encouraging people to get vaccinated."