The short answer is maybe.
HB 271 was signed into law today and it does have a provision related to Covid vaccine "passports" as they are being called. It may or may not be to your liking.
Here's the text taken from the truly passed and now signed version of the bill.
No county, city, town or village in this state receiving public funds shall require documentation of an individual having received a vaccination against COVID-19 in order for the individual to access transportation systems or services or any other public accommodations.
The conservative and, I believe, intended interpretation of this provision would be that government entities are not allowed to require proof of the Covid vaccine in order for you to access or use services, transportation systems or public accommodations they provide. However, this does not apply to any private business or entity. It also does not apply to schools.
The one detail that could be debatable rests in the term "public accommodations." Some would say it's possible that this term can be applied here in a similar fashion as it is applied in the discrimination practices prohibited by the Missouri Human Rights Act.
"Places of public accommodation includes places or businesses holding out to the general public goods, services, privileges, facilities, advantages, or accommodations for the peace, comfort, health, welfare, and safety of the general public or such public places providing food, shelter, recreation and amusement." - RSMo 213.010 (16)
Although the Missouri Human Rights Act (MHRA) does not specify anything regarding this vaccine or any other vaccine, the legal definition of this term does include private businesses. Of course, the MHRA was written well before the Covid pandemic, so it will be interesting to see how this plays out over time.
Any bets on how long it will take for someone to file a lawsuit?
The UPSIDE: Government organizations cannot require you to get the Covid vaccine in order to access their services.
The DOWNSIDE: Private businesses can require the vaccine and this provision does NOT apply to schools. School vaccine requirements is a topic of its own. Thankfully though, in Missouri we do still have the ability to obtain a religious exemption if we don't want our children to have it.
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