Federal Contractors Get Extension on Mandatory Vaccine Deadline

On November 10, 2021, the Safer Federal Workforce Task Force (“Task Force”) updated its Guidance document  and FAQ site to extend the deadline by which covered contractor employees must be fully vaccinated. 

The original Guidance required covered contract employees to be fully vaccinated by December 8, 2021.  That date was recently extended to January 4, 2022 to match the deadlines under the OSHA Emergency Temporary Standard and CMS Interim Final Rule vaccine mandates.  The deadline now requires vaccination no later than January 18, 2022, which means that a final vaccine dose must be received by January 4, 2022.  For new contracts, or contracts extended, renewed, or with exercised options after January 18, 2022, covered contractor employees must be fully vaccinated by the first day of the period of performance. 

Beyond that date change, there do not appear to be any other substantive changes to the Guidance document, other than the fact the Task Force moved its original FAQs from the Guidance, to its FAQ page.

Additionally, the Task Force updated a handful of its FAQs to reflect the January 18, 2022 deadline.  The FAQ site also included one new FAQ which provides for sample safety protocol signage that covered contractors can post at entrances to covered contractor workplaces.  The Task Force provides two such signs—one for areas of high or substantial levels of community transmission, and one for areas of low or moderate levels of community transmission.

We will continue to monitor the Task Force’s website for further developments.