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A group representing Virginia hospitals is urging health care systems to require employees to get vaccinated against the coronavirus, saying the shots are driving infections down to their lowest levels since the pandemic began.
The Virginia Hospitals and Healthcare Association, an alliance of 110 hospitals and 26 health systems, issued a statement Monday calling on its members to determine the appropriate time to implement mandates.
“Hospital and health system employee vaccination against COVID-19 will maintain the long-term ability of our health care system to respond to the pandemic, to safely care for patients by protecting them from infection, and to mitigate the spread of the virus within health care facilities and among clinicians, patients, and their families and friends,” the association said. “Implementing COVID-19 vaccine requirements will help accomplish these goals, while protecting the patients and communities served by our hospitals and health systems.”
The association’s position comes seven months into a nationwide vaccine rollout that has led to dramatic declines in cases, hospitalizations and deaths. In Virginia, only one person who was fully vaccinated against the virus died of the disease last month, according to new health department data, and 99% of all new illnesses are happening among those who aren’t vaccinated.
Frontline health care workers were some of the first people eligible to receive the shots, and all immunizations were voluntary, given that they were only authorized by federal drug officials for emergency use. With more scientific evidence available, though, some medical organizations are now beginning to impose vaccination requirements, just as they have for the flu and other communicable diseases.
Today, about 3.3% of coronavirus cases in Eastern Virginia are among health care workers, according to the Virginia Department of Health, down from its peak in April 2020 of about 26%.
In Hampton Roads, no hospital system has announced plans to make the shots a condition of employment, but that could change.
Children’s Hospital of The King’s Daughters and Bon Secours Mercy Health say they encourage vaccination and will evaluate whether to revise their policies in the future. Megan Barr, a spokeswoman for Chesapeake Regional Medical Center, said the community hospital also only recommends vaccination but will revisit the policy after the Food and Drug Administration approves the vaccines.
Sentara Healthcare, which owns 17% of the state’s inventory of hospital beds, said it agrees with the association’s stance on the effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccines but is keeping the status quo.
“At this time and with continued evaluation, COVID-19 vaccination remains voluntary for Sentara employees,” Dr. Jordan Asher, Sentara’s chief physician executive, said in a statement. “We strongly encourage our team members as well as all community members who are eligible and able to get vaccinated.”
Asher said regardless of staff’s vaccination status, they are keeping patients and visitors safe by wearing masks and continuing safety protocols in clinical settings.
Riverside Health did not return requests for comment on its vaccination policy.
It’s unclear how many health care workers in the region are already vaccinated. When asked by The Virginian-Pilot, hospital system representatives either said they didn’t have the data or declined to answer.
Outside the region, Inova Health, which operates five hospitals in Northern Virginia, said it will require its employees to get vaccinated by Sept. 1. Inova, which has 18,000 employees, expects part-time workers and contractors to get immunized, too.
About a week ago, Dr. Anthony Fauci said he believes there should be more vaccination mandates at the local level, though the Biden administration has stopped short of giving any top-down directives.
“There will be decisions made by private-sector entities, by universities, by educational institutions, and even perhaps by local leaders, should they decide that is how to keep their community safe,” White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said July 12. “If they decide to make that decision, we certainly support them in that step.”
Though the summer has seen a sharp decline in cases, public health officials say when it comes to the coronavirus, Virginia is not out of the woods. They believe vaccination will be the most effective tool at stopping the pandemic, which has killed over 11,400 Virginians and infected 533,000.
The delta variant, a more aggressive mutation of the virus, presents a new threat to unvaccinated residents and under-vaccinated communities. Data scientists say it’s likely already the dominant COVID-19 bug circulating in the state.
Julian Walker, a spokesman for the Virginia association, said the group made a statement last fall encouraging all health care workers and residents to get vaccinated. But research points to vaccines being safe and effective, prompting the group to endorse mandates.
The association’s board of directors, composed of health system representatives from across the state, made the decision to weigh in on the issue when it met last week.
“This most recent statement is a reflection of that ongoing evaluation, looking at the latest science,” he said.
Public health officials anticipate more hospitals and medical practices will mandate vaccination, following a federal court ruling in Texas that sided with a hospital that required workers to get vaccinated.
Over 100 workers at Houston Methodist Hospital who had been put on leave without pay for not getting vaccinated sued their employer, saying the action would constitute wrongful termination.
U.S. District Judge Lynn Hughes dismissed the case, saying the staff was free to work somewhere else.
The lawsuit likened the threat of termination to forced medical experiments during the Holocaust. Hughes vehemently disagreed, saying the hospital was a private employer, not the government.
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“Equating the injection requirement to medical experimentation in concentration camps is reprehensible,” he wrote. “Nazi doctors conducted medical experiments on victims that caused pain, mutilation, permanent disability, and in many cases, death.”
He added: “Every employment includes limits on the worker’s behavior in exchange for his remuneration. This is all part of the bargain.”
In the past few weeks, many organizations representing medical professionals have called for coronavirus vaccine requirements for health care workers. A coalition, including the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America, the Infectious Diseases Society of America and five other medical groups, said without vaccination being a condition of employment, “a sufficient vaccination rate is unlikely to be achieved.”
The coalition provided guidance on how hospitals and health care systems could implement new policies, including legal and ethical considerations.
Research shows that prior to the pandemic, rates of routine vaccinations among health care providers weren’t optimal.
But when health care employers instituted policies for flu shots as a condition of employment, compliance rose to over 94% during the 2019-2020 season, the coalition said, compared to 70% in organizations without a requirement.
Elisha Sauers, 757-839-4754, elisha.sauers@pilotonline.com