The Madison County Health Department Committee passed a resolution denouncing vaccine mandates, mandatory testing, terminations and exclusions due to COVID-19 vaccination status.
The resolution was passed in a 5-1 vote during the committee meeting on Jan. 7. Jack Minner was the only committee member to vote against it.
After approximately 45 minutes of public comments at the meeting, board member Mick Madison introduced the resolution. He explained that while he is pro-vaccine, he is also pro-liberty.
He said the resolution is not intended to be a statement on how individuals are medically treated in regards to COVID-19 but is a set of statements reminding them about citizens’ civil rights.
Madison said the resolution states that the County Board, sitting as the Board of Health, “hereby affirms to its own employees that it will neither impose a vaccine mandate nor require testing of its employees and will defend and protect the rights of its employees if such mandates are imposed upon Madison County by other units of government.”
He said that forcing an American citizen to do something against their will is the opposite of freedom of liberty.
“I understand physicians want to prevent disease. That’s logical, that’s reasonable,” he said.
“However, that does not override citizens’ rights to do what they feel is right for them,” he added.
Madison said that many individuals disagree with his stance and are in favor of mandatory vaccinations.
“One side is trying to force the other, one side is not forcing anything on anyone,” Madison said, rhetorically asking which side favors liberty.
He added that choosing to receive the vaccine and choosing not to vaccinate both create risk, and citizens should be able to choose which risk they are willing to take.
Madison also addressed skepticism regarding COVID-19 and why people distrust the government and the medical community. For example, natural immunity is mostly ignored as it relates to COVID-19. Also, he said studies have shown that people who are vitamin D deficient struggle more with the virus, but that information is not widely known.
“That is something we should be shouting from the rooftops, and we are not,” he said. “That creates skepticism.”
Madison said they need to be doing a better job at providing thorough, accurate information, establishing trust with the people they serve.
“The first duty of an elected official is to protect liberty,” he said.
Madison’s words were met with a loud applause from the audience.
Board member Doc Holliday read the six functions of public health government, saying they have a duty to protect and improve public health in their policy development. He added that he doesn’t think a mandate is necessary but said people need to “use common sense to do what they need to do.”
“If you lose one person, that’s one person too many,” he said.
Madison responded that people have also died after receiving the vaccine and asked which way they should apply that thought.
Board members present at the meeting in addition to committee members also discussed how to word the resolution in such a way as to condemn discrimination for both the vaccinated and the unvaccinated and to prevent authorities from using COVID-19 testing measures as a way to coerce individuals to receive the vaccine. They ultimately decided to leave it as is and address any concerns about wording when it is presented before the full board.