COVID-19 is the leading cause of death for American law enforcement officers, according to the Officer Down Memorial Page, a nonprofit tracking police officer deaths. The nation's top infectious disease physicianraised this statistic as he urged police officers to get vaccinated in an interview with Fox News on Sunday.
"I'm not comfortable with telling people what they should do under normal circumstances, but we are not in normal circumstances right now," said Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.
"Think about the implications of not getting vaccinated when you're in a position where you have a responsible job and you want to protect yourself because you're needed at your job, whether you're a police officer or a pilot or any other of those kinds of occupations," Fauci said.
Though studies have shown that COVID vaccines remain highly effective in preventing severe illness and death, law enforcement officers opposed to vaccine mandates are threatening resignations or are seeking remedy in court.
Several members of the Washington State Patrol sued Washington Gov. Jay Inslee, claiming he overstepped his legal authority and violated their rights with his vaccine mandate. A judge ruled Monday that Inslee acted legally.
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Oregon State Police troopers tried to temporarily pause the vaccine mandate that comes into effect Monday night. A judge rejected the request on Oct. 7.
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