Urges Supreme Court to Reject State Laws That Deny Religious Rights

Washington, DC - March 23, 2026

On March 19, 2026, Dr. Simone Gold and the AFLDS legal team filed an amici curiae brief with the Supreme Court of the United States in support of the Petitioners in Braccia v. Northwell Health Systems (25-963). The Petitioners in this case are former healthcare workers in the state of New York. The Respondent is Northwell Health Systems. By submitting a petition for writ of certiorari to SCOTUS, the Petitioners are asking the High Court to reverse the decision of the U.S. Second Circuit Court of Appeals.

In 2021, New York imposed a COVID-19 vaccine mandate on healthcare workers in the state and prohibited all religious exemptions. Northwell Health Systems enforced that mandate, refused to consider religious accommodation requests, and terminated the Petitioners after they declined the injections based on sincerely held religious beliefs.

These were frontline healthcare workers who were forced to choose between their faith and their careers, and many lost everything.

The Petitioners sued under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which requires employers to accommodate religious beliefs unless doing so creates an undue hardship. Instead of applying that standard, the lower courts ruled that complying with federal law would itself be an “undue hardship” because it would conflict with state law.

That ruling turns the Constitution upside down.

The question now before the Supreme Court is clear: Can a state override federal civil rights protections and erase religious accommodations entirely?

America’s Frontline Doctors maintains that the answer is no. The Supremacy Clause of the United States Constitution makes clear that federal law takes precedence over conflicting state laws. As outlined in the petition, allowing states to prohibit religious accommodations effectively nullifies the Constitution, Title VII, and invites widespread religious discrimination.

If allowed to stand, the lower court rulings would give states a roadmap to eliminate religious protections in the workplace altogether. Any state could impose a mandate, prohibit accommodations, and employers would be free to comply, even when doing so violates the First and Fourteenth Amendments to the United States Constitution as well as federal statutory law.

As detailed in our amici curiae brief, coercive medical mandates imposed under threat of job loss violate informed consent and fundamental constitutional protections. Individuals have a well-established right to refuse medical treatment, and that right cannot be overridden by government pressure or employer policy. Further, overwhelming evidence shows that the experimental COVID shots are not “safe” or “effective” nor do they prevent infection or transmission. Even the CDC’s own reporting system, VAERS, has documented millions of adverse reactions and hospitalizations attributable to these dangerous injections.    

AFLDS attorney David Dalia states, “This case exposes a fundamental breakdown in the rule of law. Federal civil rights protections guaranteed by the United States Constitution and by federal statutory laws such as Title VII cannot be erased by state mandates. The Second Circuit’s decision allows exactly that, creating a roadmap for employers to deny religious accommodations whenever it is politically convenient. Our rule of law demands that the Constitution and federal laws reign supreme over any state laws to the contrary in this area. The Supreme Court must intervene.”

AFLDS Founder and President Dr. Simone Gold added, “These healthcare workers did everything right. They acted in accordance with their faith and their conscience, and they were punished for it. This case is about restoring constitutional protections, defending informed consent, and ensuring that no American is forced into a medical procedure under threat of losing their career.”

Supporting these vital cases is critical to the mission of America’s Frontline Doctors. Please read our press releases for Does v. Hochul, Sweeney v. UCHA, Pearson v. Shriners, and related cases to learn more.

Stay tuned - We will keep you updated on the status of this case and our legal efforts to vindicate all those harmed by COVID mandates.

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About AFLDS

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Media Contact Lisa Alexander, Executive Director | Media@AFLDS.org