President Joe Biden is meeting with a group of high-ranking CEOs from around the country, including Disney CEO Bob Chapek, to discuss COVID-19 vaccine requirements and a potential mandate that would affect millions of workers around the country.
The group of invited executives have all established vaccine requirements at their respective companies. In July, the Walt Disney Company announced that all salaried and non-union employees must get vaccinated before returning to work. In August, Disney reached an agreement with its Service Trades Council Union, which represents around 30,000 employees at Disney World, to ensure all workers are vaccinated.
Others executives invited to the discussion with Biden include Greg Adams, Chair and CEO of Kaiser Permanente; Brad Smith, President of Microsoft; Madeline Bell, President and CEO of Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia; Josh Bolten, President and CEO of Business Roundtable; Roz Brewer, CEO of Walgreens Boots Alliance; Tim Boyle, President and CEO of Columbia Sportswear; Molly Moon Neitzel, Founder and CEO of Molly Moon’s Homemade Ice Cream; and William Tate IV, President of Louisiana State University. The meeting is set to begin at 1:30 p.m. ET.
In a briefing, White House officials noted broad support for a vaccine mandate across the country, citing the positive examples set by the CEOs’ own companies and polls of Americans taken by CNN and Axios. The executives will share their strategies for enacting the vaccine mandates, and the discussion is intended to rally other businesses to follow suit.
Last week, news broke that Biden was set to announce a widespread COVID mandate for companies with over 100 employees. Workers would be required to get vaccinated or get tested weekly, and the move would affect over 80 million Americans.