Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Vaccinations Among Hospital Employees Stalled
Modern Healthcare: 70% Of Hospital Workers Vaccinated, New CDC Data Show
Seven out of 10 U.S. hospital workers were vaccinated against COVID-19 as of Sept. 15, according to a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention study issued Wednesday. Staff working in children's hospitals, in metropolitan counties and in counties with higher vaccination rates were more likely to be vaccinated than their peers, agency officials wrote in an article published in the American Journal of Infection Control. (Gillespie, 11/18)
CIDRAP: CDC Survey Shows COVID-19 Vaccine Uptake Stalled At 70% In HCWs
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) published a new comprehensive survey of vaccine uptake in healthcare workers (HCWs), showing that after initial enthusiasm, vaccine uptake stalled at 70% by Sep 15, 2021. Results of the survey are published in the American Journal of Infection Control. The study was based on data collected by the Department of Health and Human Services Unified Hospital Data Surveillance System on COVID-19 vaccination coverage among hospital-based healthcare personnel between Jan 20 and Sep 15. (11/18)
The Washington Post: Health Groups Urge Businesses To Voluntarily Adopt Biden’s Vaccine Rule
The American Medical Association and more than 60 other health care associations on Thursday called on employers to voluntarily implement President Biden’s contested vaccine-or-testing mandate, saying businesses had no time to waste ahead of the busy holiday season. “We — physicians, nurses and advanced practice clinicians, health experts, and health care professional societies — fully support the requirement that workers at companies with over 100 workers be vaccinated or tested,” the organizations wrote in a joint statement. “From the first day of this pandemic, businesses have wanted to vanquish this virus. Now is their chance to step up and show they are serious.” (Diamond, 11/18)
Other developments on mandates —
The New York Times: The U.S. Army Secretary To National Guard Members Who Resist The Vaccines: Prepare For Discipline
The secretary of the Army has issued a memo warning the hundreds of thousands of soldiers in its National Guard that if they decline to get vaccinated against the coronavirus, they may not be renewed in the guard. “I have determined that all soldiers who refuse the mandatory vaccination order will be flagged,” wrote Christine E. Wormuth, the secretary, in a memo this week, which would prevent them from promotions, awards, bonuses and the like. If troops persist in declining, they will not be permitted “continued service” unless granted an approved exemption from the vaccine, she wrote. (Steinhauer, 11/18)
WUSF Public Media: Special Session Ends With Legislators Approving A Plan To Block Vaccine Mandates
Rebuking the Biden administration, Florida’s Republican-controlled Legislature on Wednesday passed a measure that seeks to prevent workers from being required to get vaccinated against COVID-19. The votes by the House and Senate came on the third day of a special legislative session called by Gov. Ron DeSantis, who has sparred for months with the White House about COVID-19 policies. But the outcome of the votes was never in doubt — Republican leaders agreed on the bill (HB 1B) before the session started and walled it off from any changes. (Saunders and Urban, 11/18)
AP: Nevada Student Suing Over University Vaccination Mandates
A 19-year-old student who says he is immune from COVID-19 because he already had it is suing the University of Nevada, Reno, the governor and others over the state’s requirement that everyone, with few exceptions, show proof of vaccination in order to register for classes in the upcoming spring semester. Jonah Gold claims there is no solid evidence that people who recover from COVID-19 ever lose their immunity. His lawsuit says any benefit of vaccination is outweighed by the threat of harmful side effects and that “COVID-19 vaccination mandates are an unconstitutional intrusion on normal immunity and bodily integrity.” (Sonner, 11/19)
AP: City Of Phoenix Employees Must Be Fully Vaccinated By Jan.18
All city of Phoenix employees will be required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 by Jan. 18 under the federal mandate, according to an email sent to city workers Thursday. The email also said employees not in compliance with the vaccine requirement by the deadline will be subject to discipline up to and including being fired. City officials said religious or medical accommodations will be available for those wishing to opt-out of the policy, but won’t be guaranteed. (11/19)
Crain's Detroit Business: COVID-19 Mandates, Reimbursement Woes Challenge Michigan's Rural Hospitals
Wave after wave of ill patients are landing at the emergency room of Memorial Healthcare in Owosso. The century-old critical-care community hospital 25 miles due west of Flint treated 92 inpatients on Nov. 15, nearly a third of which were COVID-19 positive. The hospital and its 1,500 employees are equipped to handle 85 inpatients — but operating above that threshold is standard now. (Walsh, 11/18)
On the hidden costs of vaccine mandates —
KHN: Vaccine-Or-Test Requirements Increase Work And Costs For Governments
Amanda Kostroski, a 911 dispatcher in Madison, Wisconsin, leaves her busy job once a week to go to a county health clinic to be tested for covid-19. She’s been making the 15-minute drive from work since late September, when Dane County mandated all employees get vaccinated or tested weekly. The testing is free, and she is typically back to work within an hour. Kostroski is among 10% of county employees who are unvaccinated and get weekly tests. She chose not to get immunized because she thinks the vaccines are too new and she fears side effects. (Michelle Gomez and Galewitz, 11/19)
