[ti:After US Vaccine Mandate, Workers Rush for Religious Exemptions] [by:www.51voa.com] [00:00.00]更多听力请访问51VOA.COM [00:00.04]U.S. President Joe Biden announced new rules on September 9 [00:05.48]that require certain people to get a COVID-19 vaccination. [00:13.48]One part of the announcement [00:16.24]said businesses that employ 100 people or more [00:21.12]must ask their employees to get vaccinated [00:25.64]or require them to show a negative virus test once per week. [00:32.52]The rules will affect about 100 million Americans. [00:38.44]However, Biden also said people may choose not to be vaccinated [00:44.52]due to their religious beliefs. [00:48.16]This is known as a religious exemption. [00:51.36]In the days following Biden's announcement, [00:56.00]many people began claiming that religious exemption. [01:01.68]In Los Angeles, about 2,600 police department employees [01:06.76]are claiming the exemption. [01:08.68]In the state of Washington in America's northwest, [01:12.76]thousands of people who work for the state government [01:17.00]are also claiming the exemption. [01:20.72]In Arkansas, so many employees of a hospital [01:25.12]are claiming the exemption that the hospital says they are "bluffing." [01:31.00]In the past, not many people used religious beliefs [01:35.84]as a reason to avoid vaccinations. [01:40.52]But the COVID-19 pandemic is different. [01:44.32]Even though the vaccines are safe, [01:48.04]protective and widely available in the U.S., [01:52.08]many people do not want to get them. [01:55.36]Now people are claiming the religious exemption. [02:01.24]Many religious leaders do not object to the vaccines. [02:07.84]There has been some concern, however, [02:10.76]over the cell-line used by the Johnson and Johnson vaccine. [02:16.20]The Janssen vaccine uses cells [02:19.72]grown in a lab that came from a fetus in 1985. [02:26.72]Johnson and Johnson has said repeatedly [02:30.68]there is no fetal tissue in its vaccine. [02:35.92]The Catholic church said it is "morally acceptable" [02:39.28]for Catholics to receive vaccines [02:42.84]that come from fetal cell research. [02:46.92]Pope Francis said not getting a vaccine would be "suicide." [02:54.04]He received the vaccine made by Pfizer-BioNTech. [02:59.08]The White House said it understands people may use religion [03:03.76]as a reason to refuse the vaccine. [03:07.32]However, it argues, if the new rule [03:10.60]makes more people say yes, it will save lives. [03:16.44]In the first part of September, about 1,000 people died each day [03:21.76]in the United States from COVID-19. [03:25.76]In Los Angeles, Mayor Eric Garcetti said: [03:30.96]"we will not tolerate the abuse of these exemptions [03:36.92]by those who simply don't want to get vaccinated." [03:41.92]People who work for the city must be vaccinated by October 5. [03:48.56]A group of police employees [03:51.84]who do not want the vaccine is taking legal action. [03:59.08]In the state of Washington, [04:01.00]Governor Jay Inslee said state employees may lose their jobs [04:06.04]if they are not vaccinated by October 18, [04:10.44]unless they receive an exemption. [04:13.56]However, receiving an exemption [04:17.44]does not guarantee people will stay employed. [04:21.92]The state will decide if people who are not vaccinated [04:26.76]can still do their job without putting others at risk. [04:32.52]Other large employers in the U.S., including United Airlines, [04:38.28]said people who get an exemption will not be permitted to work [04:44.56]until new COVID-19 testing plans are put into effect. [04:51.00]Jackson Lahmeyer is the leader of a church in Tulsa, Oklahoma. [04:57.36]He is offering a "religious exemption" form on his church's website. [05:05.48]In only three days, more than 35,000 people downloaded the form. [05:11.96]They can bring it to their own religious leaders or, [05:14.96]if they join the church in Oklahoma [05:18.92]and donate money, Lahmeyer will sign it. [05:24.24]"We're not anti-vaxxers. We're just pro-freedom," Lahmeyer said. [05:30.20]He added that he does not think it is right for someone [05:34.16]to lose their job if they do not want the vaccine. [05:38.88]I'm Dan Friedell. 更多听力请访问51VOA.COM