The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday rejected an emergency request by healthcare workers seeking a religious exemption to the state of Maine’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate. The court’s decision not to grant the immediate relief for the healthcare workers until it decides to review the case, means the state’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate to take effect while litigation continues in lower courts. The Supreme Court did not explain its action—typical in emergency appeals. But three conservative-leaning justices provided a dissenting opinion saying they would have granted the emergency request. Maine is not offering a religious exemption to its COVID-19 mandate in hospital and nursing homes, which means if workers opt to not take the vaccine, they risk losing their jobs. The deadline for healthcare workers to be vaccinated in the state was by the start of October, but the state government said it would not enforce the mandate until Friday. “This case …