One of Jacksonville’s largest employers has issued a mandate to its employees when it comes to the COVID-19 vaccine.
Jacksonville Memorial Hospital will comply with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid’s rule requiring workers in healthcare organizations that participate in the Medicare and Medicaid programs to be at least partially vaccinated against COVID-19, or be granted a medical or religious exemption, by December 5th. Full vaccination is required by January 4th.
Memorial Health System officials said in a email yesterday that the CMS rules align with their values and they are “working to comply with the deadlines set out by CMS and have advised our workforce of their options for requesting a medical or religious exemption.”
Memorial officials say that the vaccination rate at JMS and all of Memorial Services in the Jacksonville area is approximately 80%. A request for an interview with Dr. Scott Boston about the mandate was not granted by Memorial officials.
According to WMAY, workers who are not fully vaccinated by January 4th will be placed on unpaid leave and will eventually face termination. A number of Illinois hospitals have adopted similar policies.
On Tuesday, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration announced it has suspended the implementation and enforcement of President Joe Biden’s vaccine mandate. The suspension comes after the U.S. Court of Appeals Fifth Circuit ordered the mandate to be halted until further notice.