Chicago firefighter says city forced him to refuse all other meds before granting Covid vax religious exemption

A Chicago firefighter has filed suit against the city, claiming his rights were violated when the city of Chicago forced him to sign a form agreeing not to take even the most basic of medications before granting him a religious exemption from the city's Covid vaccine mandate.

On Feb. 5, plaintiff Daniel Baumgartner filed suit in Chicago federal court against the city, accusing the city of religious discrimination.

The case argues actions by the city were in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the First Amendment, and Illinois' Religious Freedom Restoration Act. 

According to the complaint, Baumgartner has been a Chicago firefighter for over 20 years.  Baumgartner maintains that his Christian beliefs prevent him from receiving certain vaccines developed or tested using cell lines derived from aborted fetuses. According to the complaint, Baumgartner believes that is the case with the Covid injections distributed by Pfizer and Moderna under an emergency use authorization fit that criteria.

Baumgartner initially submitted a request for religious exemption from the Covid shots in December 2021. But he said the city required him to sign a so-called Medical Attestation Form or likely face exemption denial.

The lawsuit asserts the form would all but bar Baumgartner from taking even basic over the counter medications, including Benadryl, ibuprofen and aspirin, because the city claims all of those medications were developed using cells obtained from aborted fetuses. Baumgartner's complaint asserts the forms are "riddled with inaccurate and flatly erroneous information about the listed medications and their connections to fetal cells."

But that aside, the complaint asserts the city's order directing Baumgartner to sign that form is without precedent, and is an illegal sudden change in workplace rules that amounts to illegal retaliation against employees attempting to exercise their constitutional rights.

The lawsuit seeks court orders requiring the city to make Baumgartner "whole" and to respect his constitutional rights. It further seeks unspecified damages, including punitive damages and attorney fees.

Baumgartner is represented in the action by attorney Frank Avila, of Chicago.