Appeal from the United States District Court
for the Western District of Michigan at Grand Rapids.
No. 1:21-cv-00756—Paul Lewis Maloney, District Judge.
Argued: December 7, 2022
Decided and Filed: July 13, 2023
Before: KETHLEDGE, WHITE, and BUSH, Circuit Judges.
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OPINION
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JOHN K. BUSH, Circuit Judge. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Michigan State
University (MSU) required its employees to receive a vaccine against the disease. Plaintiffs,
who are MSU employees, objected. They claimed their naturally acquired immunity to COVID-19 should exempt them from the vaccine policy. That reasoning did not persuade MSU, which
imposed disciplinary action against them for not getting vaccinated. The complaint below
alleged that MSU violated plaintiffs’ constitutional rights and that the university’s vaccine
mandate was preempted by federal law. The district court granted the university’s motion to
dismiss. We agree with the district court that, as alleged, the university’s vaccine policy neither
violated plaintiffs’ constitutional rights nor was preempted by federal law. We therefore
AFFIRM. |