Idaho Lt. Governor Janice McGeachin Scolds Speaker Bedke

Lieutenant Governor Janice McGeachin told us this morning that she hasn't been getting a lot of sleep lately due to the number of emails she's received from Idaho healthcare workers worried they will lose their jobs because they haven't taken the Covid-19 shot. "Last night, I was trying to sort through a thousand messages that were coming to me last night."

The lieutenant governor explained her position on the recent announcement that Saint Luke's, Saint Alphonsus, and Primary health will force their employees to get the shot.  "I am so upset by what is happening here in Idaho; I am not anti-vaccine at all," she said. "If a person wants to get a vaccination, then they should do that; it's a freedom of choice."

Lt. Gov. McGeachin did say that she's against employer forced vaccinations. "I am very much against these mandates for people who are being discriminated against. They said that if they don't put the little blue sticker on their name tag and don't get the vaccine by a certain date, they're going to lose their jobs. That is what is so wrong, and I can't believe it's happening here in Idaho."

The lieutenant governor has written a letter to the Idaho Speaker of the House, Scott Bedke, asking him to reconvene the House to discuss legislation that would protect workers from employer-mandated vaccinations. Speaker Bedke told KTVB that he doubts anything will happen in the next two weeks.

The lieutenant governor shared her reaction to the speaker's comments.

"It's such a cavalier attitude, while people are struggling and in fear of losing their livelihood, such cavalier attitude coming from the speaker of the House and some of our other elected officials."

 

 

She says she is coming to Boise to reach out to the governor personally. The Lieutenant governor has confirmed that her staff has reached begun communications with the governor's staff. Lt.Gov McGeachin encouraged other lawmakers to put pressure on the leadership to have them come back to Boise to address this issue.  You can read here how other lawmakers have spoken out in support of the medical workers.