ÁñÁ«ÊÓƵ

On Wednesday, the first day that members of the House and Senate could file legislation for the upcoming session, more than a half dozen bills were introduced that could prohibit vaccine mandates or allow “natural immunity� to be considered the equivalent of having been inoculated.

All of the proposals were introduced by Republican lawmakers, who have been at the forefront of the fight against vaccine orders.

“I think it will be something that will be talked about a lot in the upcoming legislative session,� said Rep. , R-St. Charles.

The ongoing fight against vaccine requirements comes as St. Louis-area doctors warned of a significant increase in patients hospitalized due to the delta strain of the coronavirus.

The number of confirmed COVID-19 patients hospitalized in the region has grown 55% in the past three weeks, from 241 on Nov. 10 to 374 on Wednesday, according to data reported by the St. Louis Metropolitan Pandemic Task Force.

Along with the delta variant, the omicron variant also is seen as a potential threat, prompting renewed calls for an increase in vaccinations and booster shots.

Nationwide, about 60% of the population is fully vaccinated, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Missouri stands at 51%, according to state data.

Among the bills that could be debated when the Legislature begins meeting on Jan. 5 is one filed by House Speaker Pro Tem , R-O’Fallon, designed to protect employers from liability if their workers are injured by required immunizations.

Another filed by Rep. , a St. Charles County Republican, would prohibit schools from mandating COVID vaccinations.

Schroer also wants to bar COVID-19 testing for employees who are not vaccinated if the same testing is not required for vaccinated people.

Schnelting introduced a measure that would prohibit the government or private companies from requiring proof of a vaccination for travel or entry into a business.

“It prohibits the government and private companies from requiring vaccine passports,� Schnelting said of his legislation. “If you want to get the vaccine, you have every right to get it. I’m against you being forced against your will to get a vaccine.�

Vaccines designed to save lives from a deadly respiratory disease have become a political flashpoint across the nation at the same time health officials are urging people to get the shot.

The Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services, for example, says over natural immunity.

On Monday, a federal judge blocked President Joe Biden’s administration from enforcing a coronavirus vaccine mandate on thousands of health care workers in Missouri and nine other states that had brought the first legal challenge against the requirement.

The court order said that the federal Centers for Medicare & Medicaid had no clear authority from Congress to enact the vaccine mandate for providers participating in the two government health care programs for the elderly, disabled and poor.

The court order against the health care vaccine mandate comes after Biden’s administration suffered a similar setback for a broader policy. A federal court previously placed a hold on a separate rule requiring businesses with more than 100 employees to ensure their workers get vaccinated or else wear masks and get tested weekly for the coronavirus.

Officials at CMS had no immediate comment about the preliminary injunction. The Department of Justice, which defended the rule, declined to comment.

Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt, who spearheaded the lawsuit, said the ruling “pushes back on the overreach of power� by those who are “using the coronavirus as a tool� for control over people.

Schmitt, a Republican candidate for U.S. Senate, has also filed lawsuits seeking to block the Biden administration’s vaccination rules for large private employers and federal contractors.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.