BELLINGHAM, WA (MyBellinghamNow.com) – A federal appeals court has upheld the dismissal of a lawsuit challenging the City of Bellingham’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate.

Two judges with the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled on May 26 that the city did not violate the Constitution by requiring vaccinations for its workers during the pandemic.

It affirmed a previous federal court ruling after a group of 26 former city employees sued the city and former mayor Seth Fleetwood over the mandate.

In their ruling, the judges stated that city officials had enough evidence to believe the vaccine was effective in protecting against severe illness, with the potential benefits outweighing the risks. They also stated that the employees failed to show that the city’s process for reviewing their religious and medical exemption requests violated their constitutional rights.

The Bellingham Herald was the first to report on last month’s ruling.

Fleetwood issued an executive order in September 2021 requiring COVID-19 vaccines for city workers, volunteers and contractors. 17 city workers were fired for refusing to comply with the mandate, six others resigned and four more lost their jobs for violating a similar mandate set by the state.