Does Not Meet Criteria: The Cruel and Unscientific Reality of New York Covid Vaccine Mandates
To whomever is willing to read this,
As most of the United States and even the world has moved forward removing Covid mandates New York City continues to strictly enforce its vaccine mandate against city and private employees. This mandate bars private employees from working in the confines of the city and has caused thousands of city employees to be terminated from their jobs. Last week it was finally my husband’s turn. After nearly a year of sitting in a grueling agony of limbo he received the dreaded email.
“Your religious exemption request does not meet criteria.”
After 15 years of dedicated service to the city of New York, physical injuries, sickness, countless missed holidays, birthdays, and important events my husband was told he had 7 days to get a Covid-19 vaccine, retire, or get fired.
I’m pretty sure a lot of people have stopped reading by now saying, “It’s just a shot” or “It was his choice.” If you are still with me, I would like to ask you to continue reading with an open mind and an open heart. I would like to break down for you just how cruel and unscientific these mandates are for all New Yorkers that have been subject to them.
I would also like to introduce you to my husband, my hero; a good man who deserves so much better than this.
I will apologize in advance; I am not a writer. Words do not come easy to me. I know this letter will change nothing and Eric Adams and Kathy Hochul are determined to continue with these mandates. That being said, it is not in my nature to sit quietly when injustice is being done. What is being done to the people of New York is wrong on every level.
My husband, until July 29, was a New York City Detective Specialist with the Emergency Service Unit(ESU). He is a good, hardworking, and humble man who gives so much of himself and asks nothing in return. He worked tirelessly throughout this pandemic without ever complaining, while putting himself at great personal risk. He along with so many others were deemed essential when the COVID-19 pandemic first hit us in 2020. While most of the world stayed “safe at home”, he worked overtime helping strangers, just like every other front line hero NYers used to bang pots and pans for at 7pm outside their windows. He saved countless lives during his time working as a police officer including the day he got Covid.
As a Detective in ESU my husband is one of the go-to guys “when a cop needs a cop.” The City has spent hundreds of thousands of dollars training him in rescue work, as an emergency medical technician, in high risk tactical operations, scuba, swift water rescue, and counter terror operations, to name just a few. Further, he was selected for advanced training with the Secret Service. He has responded to all kinds of situations: suicidal people on bridges, hostage negotiations, high risk warrants, federal investigations, dignitary/VIP protection, and lifesaving medical treatment on and off duty. My husband is not easy to replace and the city is currently not training anyone to replace him. He’s the guy that stops to help stranded strangers on the road off duty. He’s the kind of man who hands his baby to his brother in law while he runs two campsites over during vacation to perform CPR on a stranger. My husband literally does it all. My own real life action hero. He seeks no praise and never brags. He was even thanked by Joe Biden last year when he came to tour the destruction of Tropical Storm Ida.
After a year of dodging Covid and many high-risk exposures as “an essential worker”, my husband finally got sick March 2021. Not surprisingly my husband caught COVID saving someone’s life. My husband was called to the scene of a suicidal man on the ledge of an overpass. Unable to talk the man down, the police on scene called ESU for help. Like so many times before, my husband and his coworkers climbed out onto the ledge and tried to reason with the man. When the situation became more ominous my husband and his coworkers grabbed him and pulled him off the ledge and held him until a hole could be cut in the fence to pull him through to safety. My husband tested positive for covid following the incident. For the first time in his career my husband went out sick but eventually made a full recovery.
Fast forward a few more months to the end of Bill de Blasio’s reign as mayor. It was Fall 2021, and science showed that the Covid vaccines were not sterilizing. They were not stopping transmission of the virus as so many had believed they would. They also had short lived efficacy and booster doses were now being discussed. It was becoming apparent that a “fully vaccinated” person was just as likely to get COVID and give COVID as an unvaccinated person. Regardless, Mayor deBlasio issued mandates on city workers and private employees requiring them to get vaccinated. This was following the statewide mandate on healthcare workers that led to thousands of terminations to “essential” employees that sacrificed so much emotionally and physically throughout the pandemic. Gone were the days of clapping, banging pots, and pans for our heroes; now they were selfish for questioning the vaccines.
There was no scientific support to back the mandates at this point. It was glaringly obvious they were not sterilizing. No medical exemptions were allowed; even for people who had severe reactions to the first dose and did not want to follow through with the second. Women struggling to get pregnant, undergoing IVF, breastfeeding, or currently pregnant were told comply or face termination even as reports of serious menstrual issues were spreading. People who were COVID recovered with blood tests showing high levels of antibodies were ordered to comply. Many people cheered the mandates from the safety of their homes, having never been “essential” or knowing the great sacrifices these men and women have made during their careers and the pandemic. The only hope at avoiding the mandate was requesting religious exemption.
The unions have done little to nothing to help. Delegates have had no answers and offered little support. Lawsuits were filed unsuccessfully. Journalists didn’t step up to investigate. Politicians from all over the state overwhelmingly ignored the pleas of unvaccinated workers. Very few stepped up to try to help. The NYPD, hoping to avoid trouble, chose to deny all exemption requests. Heartfelt letters pages long went completely unread. No effort was made at all to help thousands of dedicated workers. The NYPD passed the decision of who is worthy to keep off to the city. Enter Eric Adams.
Adams, the newly minted mayor, chose to continue the mandates as the moral and scientific reasons for having them crumbled in the face of mounting evidence — the vaccines are not sterilizing and efficacy wanes quickly. This has been one of his many appalling covid responses, (along with keeping toddlers masked until June, but I digress). With pushback mounting and vile double standards becoming more obvious, Adams caved to pressure by allowing professional athletes and entertainers, such as Kyrie Irving, to remain unvaccinated while stadium employees still faced termination. Kyrie, a man of integrity, successfully proved how ridiculous these mandates are. I am grateful for his courage and fortitude. Unfortunately, Adams is very comfortable with the blatant discrimination and obvious pandering to the wealthy elite. It does not bother him that catering to celebrities proves the mandates are completely unnecessary.
City Hall began slowly denying exemption requests dragging the process out for months. Men and women have been going to work every day with the stress of wondering if today was their last day. The city, department, and unions still provided no answers to the many questions that people have. Mark Levine and Ashwin Vasan callously tweeted advice on mental health and stress, disregarding the pain and anguish they were knowingly causing thousands of city employees, both private and civil. The denial process is still ongoing with thousands still awaiting responses. As crime and inflation rise, the city continues to deny formerly essential workers with absolutely no explanation of why they “did not meet criteria”, or what those requirements were. Very, very few people I know were approved.
I would love to know the exact numbers of how many have been denied and how many have been approved as well as what the requirements were for approval. It’s difficult to describe the anxiety and pain of having your faith questioned, having to prove to a stranger your religious beliefs are worthy, and having no idea why you were deemed “does not meet criteria.” It’s ironic that my husband, who has always been open about his faith has been denied. After the death of Brian Moore my husband organized a blue ribbon campaign with local florists. My husband, myself (very pregnant), and our two young children walked miles hanging ribbons to support Brian’s family. My husband was even interviewed in the 2015 NY Times article where he discussed the importance of having faith on the job.
“On nearby Hicksville Road, an off-duty city officer, assigned to Truck 10 of the Emergency Service Unit, walked on a grassy median with his 3-year-old son, pausing every few steps to affix another blue ribbon to another telephone pole.
His wife is an officer in the Midtown South Precinct. He worked with Officer Moore’s cousin in the 113th Precinct. His church in Massapequa draws numerous officers. But like those in Father Derasmo’s congregation, he said, he does not “advertise” his vocation.
“Just part of the community,” said the officer, who declined to give his name so as not to detract from Officer Moore. “Go about my daily stuff; go to work, come home, and live my life with my family, same as everybody else.”
Without faith, though, he would be adrift in managing a job that presents a daily dose of moral puzzles, personal angst and life-or-death battles.
“I know that there’s something better after this life,” the officer said. “Something, someone or some being that’ll help me through the daily stuff.”
He lifted up his son. He grabbed a plastic bag filled with ribbons and walked on.”
Adams likes to play semantics arguing that he is not firing anyone. He likes to say people are choosing to leave. This is coercion. When you receive your denial you are given three choices: comply, retire/quit, or get fired. If you are fired you lose everything: your pension, your benefits, and most likely your ability to work in another department. A great thank you after all your dedicated service and sacrifices. Not all women and men are in the position they can quit and many have had to get vaccinated, forcing them to do something to their body under extreme duress. “My Body My Choice,” does not apply here apparently. Others, like my husband, have vested out taking early retirement. Vesting out puts us at a great financial disadvantage especially during times of inflation. I am grateful I still have medical benefits or my husband would likely be forced get the vaccine against his will to protect our children. Technically though Adams is correct he’s fired very few people.
I am so proud of my husband for standing firm in his beliefs and doing what we both feel is right. I understand not everyone is in the position we are, and I am not casting judgement. I fully support anyone’s decision to be vaccinated, but it should be a choice between that individual and their doctors, not politicians. It is disgusting to hear Adams shouting “my body, my choice” as he continues to force people to subject their bodies to unwanted and unnecessary injections.
I truly do not understand why Adams continues with his mandates. I yearn for the days where investigative reporters asked the hard questions and dug for hidden agendas. I can tell you that I believe the decision to enforce mandates lies partially with financial incentives. By forcing these hardworking men and women to retire early, the City will save millions of dollars in pension costs, benefits, and variable supplement. The City also weeds out the defiant. The ones who did not do as they were told and were not blindly obedient to political authority.
In our house we do not teach blind obedience to authority. We tell our children that doing the right thing is very rarely easy. We also teach them that it is important to stand up for what you believe in, and my husband is leading by example. We are a family that understands sacrifice all too well. We will be fine. We will thrive regardless. This is a loss for the City and a gain for our family. While this is not how my husband wanted to end his career, gone are the sleepless nights worrying if he will return home safe. No more phone calls he’s running late because of dangerous jobs or returning home with scars and injuries. I am so proud of my husband and grateful he could end his career healthy. Unfortunately, there are still thousands of city workers and private employees waiting to find out if today is their last day. If you’ve read this far I beg you, please help us fight to protect those workers. Raise your voices and tell Adams and Hochul enough is enough. End the mandates now so no other family must suffer.
Sincerely,
A loving wife
Jamey Cronemeyer
https://www.city-journal.org/the-dangers-of-nyc-vaccine-mandate
https://nypost.com/2021/09/07/nih-to-study-how-covid-19-vaccine-impacts-menstrual-cycle/amp/
https://nypost.com/2022/02/12/fired-brooklyn-teacher-calls-city-hall-vaccine-mandate-shameful/amp/
https://www.nba.com/news/nets-hope-for-nyc-vaccine-mandate-change-so-kyrie-irving-can-play
https://nypost.com/2022/03/24/adams-exempts-athletes-performers-from-nyc-vaccine-mandate/amp/
https://amp.cnn.com/cnn/2022/03/24/sport/kyrie-irving-new-york-vaccine-mandate/index.html
https://nypost.com/2022/03/25/lift-the-vax-mandate-for-everyone-mayor-adams/amp/
https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/coronavirus/nyc-mayor-on-controversial-vaccine-mandate-change-for-famous-people-thats-over/3619238/?amp=1
https://nypost.com/2022/03/24/unvaxxed-new-yorkers-blast-adams-exemptions-for-athletes/
https://www.thecity.nyc/2022/3/24/22995486/adams-kyrie-irving-carve-out-nyc-unions-workers-angry?_amp=true
https://nypost.com/2022/02/20/eric-adams-admits-it-vax-mandates-dont-work/amp/