The Massachusetts Nurses Association, representing thousands of nurses at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, is fighting a new rule punishing members who refuse a flu shot.
A Massachusetts judge has dismissed a lawsuit that challenged a Boston hospital's requirement that all employees must get flu vaccinations.
A nurses' union had challenged Brigham and Women's Hospital's vaccination policy, but a judge on Monday ruled that the Massachusetts Nurses Association did not have standing to bring the suit.
The hospital last fall mandated that all employees must get flu shots unless they are granted medical or religious exemptions. Workers who do not get inoculated are required to wear face masks around patients.
The union said the policy was unnecessary, and threatening a nurse's job over the police was an overreach. A spokesman said the union may appeal.
A Brigham and Women's spokeswoman says the hospital is "gratified that the court has affirmed our right to implement this policy."
