Beverly Hills Firefighters, City Reach Vaccine Mandate Agreement

BEVERLY HILLS, CA — The city of Beverly Hills and the Beverly Hills Firefighters' Association reached an agreement about the 18 fire department employees who were granted COVID-19 vaccination exemptions.

The agreement comes as the department faces turmoil over the COVID-19 pandemic, with many firefighters speaking out against vaccine mandates. Two firefighters sued the city and Los Angeles County in December over the vaccine mandate, which required health care workers to be vaccinated.

The 18 employees who were granted vaccination exemptions for medical and religious reasons will need to take daily COVID-19 tests and wear "enhanced" protective equipment to interact with medical patients, the city said in a news release Monday. The agreement was made between the city and the Beverly Hills Fire Association, a labor representative for most of the department's firefighters.

"I am pleased that a consensus has been reached and the community of Beverly Hills will receive the highest level of service it deserves,” fire chief Greg Barton said in Monday's news release.

Beverly Hills Fire Department staff falls under the Oct. 1 Los Angeles County mandate that requires all health care workers to be fully vaccinated. Initially, 25 of the department's 97 firefighters requested exemptions, according to the Beverly Hills Courier.