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By HEATHER HOLLINGSWORTH and TAMMY WEBBER, Associated Press
Hospitals and care homes across the country brace for worsening staff shortages as state-set deadlines arrive for healthcare workers to get vaccinated against COVID-19.
With such ultimatums taking effect this week in states like New York, California, Rhode Island and Connecticut, the fear is that some employees will quit or be fired or suspended rather than getting vaccinated.
“How it’s going to play out, we don’t know. We are concerned about how this will exacerbate an already serious enough staffing problem, â€said California Hospital Association spokesperson Jan Emerson-Shea, adding that the organization“ absolutely â€supports the immunization requirement of the state.
New York health care workers had until the end of Monday to get at least one dose, but some hospitals had already started to suspend or take action against holdouts.
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Erie County Medical Center Corp. in Buffalo said about 5% of its hospital staff have been placed on unpaid leave for not being vaccinated, along with 20% of the staff at his nursing home. And the state’s largest healthcare provider, Northwell Health, said it had started removing unvaccinated workers from its system, although it said its workforce was nearly 100% vaccinated. .
“To those who have not yet made this decision, please do the right thing,” said New York Governor Kathy Hochul.
Some New York hospitals have prepared contingency plans that included reducing non-critical services and limiting nursing home admissions. The governor also made plans to seek help from members of the National Guard with medical training, retirees or vaccinated workers from out of state.
About a dozen states have immunization mandates covering healthcare workers in hospitals, long-term care facilities, or both. Some allow exemptions for medical or religious reasons, but these employees are often required to undergo regular COVID-19 testing.
States that have set such requirements already tend to have high vaccination rates. The highest rates are concentrated in the Northeast, the lowest in the South and Midwest.
Many hospitals and nursing homes are already understaffed amid the pandemic, as many nurses and others have resigned following burnout or left for lucrative jobs traveling from state to state. ‘other.
In California, where health workers have until Thursday to be fully immunized, some hospitals are planning layoffs, suspensions or moving people to other positions, Emerson-Shea said. She said many mobile nurses have turned down assignments in California due to state vaccine requirements.
In Rhode Island, where the vaccination mandate goes into effect Friday, the state said hospitals can allow unvaccinated employees to continue working 30 days after the deadline in cases where their termination would compromise patient safety. The warrant is being challenged in court because it does not allow religious exemptions.
In states that do not have warrants, some hospitals impose theirs.
Ginger Robertson, a registered nurse who works in a mental health clinic at a hospital in Bismarck, North Dakota, has requested a religious exemption from her hospital’s vaccination requirement. She said she would look for another job if she didn’t get it.
“Honestly, I really love my job. I’m good at it. I appreciate my patients. I love where I am, “she said.” So it’s a really tough place to have to choose between two things that I don’t want to do. I don’t want to leave and I don’t want to be vaccinated.
She said other nurses were also considering leaving what she called the “insulting” warrant.
“We feel demoralized, like we aren’t smart enough to make these choices on our own,†said Robertson.
The Massachusetts mandate, issued by Republican Governor Charlie Baker, applies only to nursing homes, assisted living facilities, hospice programs and home care programs. It allows medical and religious exemptions but does not require regular testing. The deadline is October 31.
In Connecticut, a vaccination mandate for employees of public hospitals went into effect Monday. It does not apply to private hospitals, some of which have their own requirements. Medical and religious exemptions are possible, but anyone else who does not get vaccinated will be excluded from the workplace.
About 84% of New York’s more than 450,000 hospital workers were fully immunized as of Wednesday, according to state data. Nursing home data through Sunday showed about 89% of nursing home workers were fully immunized.
The New York City Hospital System reported a 95% vaccination rate for nurses and a higher rate for physicians.
“I feel good, very good about our ability to have the staff we need in public hospitals,” said Mitchell Katz, head of the city’s public hospital system.
In Missouri, which became a hotspot for COVID-19 over the summer, Mercy’s hospital system is requiring vaccinations among staff at its hundreds of medical centers and clinics in Missouri and neighboring states by Thursday. .
Anyone who does not comply by then will be given a 30-day unpaid suspension, said Mercy spokeswoman Bethany Pope.
Webber reported from Fenton, Michigan, and Hollingsworth from Mission, Kansas. Philip Marcelo and Mark Pratt in Boston; Michael Melia in Hartford, Connecticut; and Michael Hill in Albany, New York, contributed to this story.
Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
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