UNC and Duke Health among North Carolina hospitals requiring COVID-19 vaccines for healthcare workers

CHAPEL HILL, NC (WTVD) – Several healthcare providers in North Carolina will now require all their employees to be fully immunized against COVID-19.

UNC Health alerted employees on Thursday that they should be vaccinated by Tuesday, September 21.

This includes anyone working at UNC Medical Center, UNC REX Healthcare, Chatham Hospital, Johnston Health, UNC Health Southeastern, UNC Rockingham Health Care, UNC Physicians Network Practices, and Shared Service Sites. UNC Health who support these hospitals.

The North Carolina Healthcare Association (NCHA) praised the policy.

Atrium Health, Cone Health, Duke University Health System, Novant Health, and Wake Forest Baptist Health have accepted similar mandates.

“Together and alongside the North Carolina Healthcare Association, we believe that a mandatory immunization program is in the best public health interest and is essential for the safety of our patients, teammates and communities,” said said Wesley Burks, CEO of UNC Health. employees.

Burks said about 72 percent of UNC Health employees are currently vaccinated.

Duke Health’s deadline for employees is also September 21.

Duke executive vice president William Fulkerson said 75 percent of its employees already had their vaccine.

He mentioned the Delta variant as the reason for the policy change, as it is highly contagious.

“Similar to our existing influenza vaccination policy, the COVID vaccine requirement aligns with our core value of ‘caring for our patients, their loved ones and others’,” he wrote in a email to staff.

According to Charlotte ABC’s WSOC subsidiary, Atrium Health requires its employees to be fully immunized by October 31, and Novant Health has set its deadline for September 15.

“I am very grateful to our hospitals and health systems which have been tremendous partners as we worked together to respond to the pandemic,” NCDHHS Secretary of Health Dr Mandy Cohen said in a statement. communicated. “We owe an incredible debt of gratitude to our healthcare workers who generously gave of themselves to protect and care for us and put us on the road to recovery. Thank you to the North Carolina Healthcare Association and the healthcare systems that are leading the way in requiring employee immunizations, for taking action to protect healthcare workers, their patients, our communities, and the state. Vaccinations are our way out of the pandemic. Do not wait to vaccinate. “

The NCHA announced on Thursday that it had approved vaccination mandates for healthcare workers with the following statement:

“North Carolina’s hospitals and healthcare systems exist to improve and protect the health of our communities, which is why they put the health and safety of patients, visitors and team members at the heart of care they provide. In keeping with this goal, the North Carolina Healthcare Association strongly supports hospital and healthcare system policies that require all hospital employees and clinical team members to be vaccinated against COVID-19. The NCHA recognizes that every hospital and healthcare system is unique and encourages everyone to determine the appropriate time to implement a requirement. All hospitals should continue to require other infection control measures as directed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, such as the wearing of masks and other personal protective equipment.
Our state’s health systems and hospitals have seen firsthand how debilitating and deadly this disease can be. When the COVID-19 vaccines were first released, the NCHA and its members strongly encouraged all North Carolinians, including hospital and health system workers, to get vaccinated against COVID-19. In the months that followed, clinical data showed COVID-19 vaccines to be extraordinarily safe and effective, and our best tool in preventing the spread of disease.
The evidence is clear – vaccination against COVID-19 has prevented people from becoming seriously ill, requiring hospitalization or dying from the virus, as well as passing it on to others. To date, over 4.7 million North Carolinians and over 161 million Americans have been vaccinated with minimal side effects. Of most concern, however, is the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services which reports that nearly 99% of COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations and deaths in May and June were in people not fully vaccinated. Additionally, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has reported a sharp increase in new coronavirus cases as the delta variant becomes more prevalent.
Protecting patients, visitors and healthcare workers from COVID-19 continues to be of paramount importance. Vaccinating hospital and healthcare workers against COVID-19 is essential to safely care for patients by protecting them from infection and to mitigate the spread of the virus in healthcare settings and among clinicians, patients and patients. their families and friends. “