All health care workers in the state of New York must be vaccinated against COVID-19 by Sept. 27, Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo announced Monday.
The order includes those employed at hospitals, nursing homes and other long-term care facilities. There will be limited exemptions for religious or medical reasons, Cuomo said in a statement.
About 75% of hospital workers in New York are vaccinated, as are 74% of workers in adult care facilities, the state said. Only 68% of nursing home workers are fully vaccinated.
“Now, the delta variant is spreading across the nation an across New York – new daily positives are up over 1000% over the last six weeks,” Cuomo said in a statement. “And over 80 percent of recent positives in New York State are linked to the delta variant. We must now act again to stop the spread.”
Cuomo said the state Department of Health will issue orders requiring all hospital, long-term care facility and nursing homes to “develop and implement a policy mandating employee vaccinations,” according to the announcement.
“I have strongly urged private businesses to implement vaccinated-only admission policies, and school districts to mandate vaccinations for teachers,” Cuomo said. “Neither will occur without the state legally mandating the actions — private businesses will not enforce a vaccine mandate unless it’s the law, and local school districts will be hesitant to make these challenging decisions without legal direction.”
The incoming administration of Lt. Gov. Kathy Hochul was briefed on the new mandate, a news release from Cuomo’s office said.
Check back for updates on this developing story.
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