Could General Hospital rehire fired stars Steve Burton and Ingo Rademacher? Keep reading to find out why fans are hopeful.

General Hospital stars fired for mask mandate non-compliance

In November, General Hospital fans got a one-two punch when two long-time actors were fired from the soap. Steve Burton and Ingo Rademacher were both let go for refusing to comply with ABC’s vaccine mandate. The Walt Disney Company owns the network and enacted a vaccine mandate for all employees beginning on November 1, 2021.

Furthermore, Y&R star Richard Burgi was fired by CBS in January of 2022 for COVID-related reasons. The actor tested positive for COVID around the Christmas holidays and followed the updated CDC guidelines of five days of quarantine. However, the network mandated a 10-day quarantine, according to NBC News.

Burgi was fired for “inadvertently” violating the show’s Covid protocols.

Ingo Rademacher files lawsuit against the network

Burton and Rademacher both applied for religious exemptions to the vaccine mandate, which was denied by ABC. Consequently, Ingo Rademacher filed a lawsuit accusing the network of religious discrimination.

The lawsuit is ongoing.

During the video announcing his exit, Steve Burton shared the hope of returning someday to wrap up Jason Morgan’s storyline. How does the recent Supreme Court decision to block workplace vaccine mandates play into the possibility that Steve Burton and Ingo Rademacher could get their jobs back?

Could Steve Burton or Ingo Rademacher return to GH?

After the Supreme Court loss, President Biden has backed off his attempt to enforce vaccine mandates in the workplace. Furthermore, Disney World in Orlando, FL, stopped enforcing the mandate for park employees in November of 2021.

Therefore, it’s possible that ABC will no longer require cast and crew members get the vaccine or lose their jobs. At this point, the network has yet to publicly respond to the Supreme Court decision blocking vaccine mandates.

Neither Rademacher or Burton have given hints on social media of being in talks with the network to reprise their respective roles as Jax Jacks or Jason Morgan. However, General Hospital fans are petitioning to get the soap to rehire Steve Burton.

A petition on change.org has over 5k signatures. “Bring back Steve Burton to General Hospital!,” fans beg. The request notes that the network’s parent company, Disney, has lifted the vaccine mandate for their employees. Fans urge ABC to consider the same with General Hospital employees.

Do you think Steve Burton and Ingo Rademacher might get their jobs back now that the federal vaccine mandate is over? Share your thoughts in the comments below.