A federal jury has awarded $687,000 to a research scientist who was fired from BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee for refusing to comply with the company's COVID-19 vaccine mandate.
Company officials told Ms. Benton in August of 2021 that she would need to be "Fully vaccinated" to keep her position, according to her lawsuit.
While Ms. Benton said her position became fully remote in 2020, BlueCross BlueShield said it would have involved some in-person interaction with clients.
"We believe our vaccine requirement was the best decision for our employees and members, and we believe our accommodation to the requirement complied with the law. We appreciate our former employees' service to our members and communities throughout their time with our company." A lawyer representing Ms. Benton didn't respond to a request for comment.
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, presented with the case, cleared Ms. Benton to sue her former employer.
The company also asserted that Ms. Benton didn't hold a sincerely held religious belief and "Denies that the COVID-19 vaccine was derived from aborted fetus cell lines, which is verifiably false," according to the company's filing.
The companies have said the final products don't contain aborted fetal cells.
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