Health care workers were among the first people to receive the COVID-19 vaccine. Still, a large number are refusing to get it. A recent Kaiser Family Foundation survey found “29 percent of health workers are vaccine hesitant.” Many people who are vaccine hesitant worry about the effect politics had on making the vaccine and that it is not yet approved by the FDA. Various people in power continue to tell the public to be vaccinated but their staff aren’t vaccinated. They say things like “everyone has to be protected,” and “unvaccinated people are the reason for the recent surge.” If these are the case, why aren’t your employees required to be vaccinated? During a Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee hearing Senator Richard Burr asked a panel of public health leaders how many of their workers had been vaccinated. Dr. Faucci and FDA official Dr. Marks say around half of the people on each of their respective staff are vaccinated. The director of the CDC only said employees are encouraged to get vaccinated.
Workers Required to Have the Vaccine
The Department of Veterans Affairs announced people employed by medical facilities would be required to be vaccinated. This made them the first federal agency to make vaccines mandatory, but not the last.The federal government employs an estimated 10 million people. This includes the main government, federal-civilian workforce, contract workers, and grant workers. These people have been told they must get the vaccine by Biden’s administration. Biden even asked the Department of Defense to make the vaccine part of the mandatory shots required for the military, which they did. The president also has asked school districts to hold clinics to vaccinate the children and young adults before the new school year. More and more people are finding themselves required to get a vaccine but the CDC still says to wear a mask indoors, why? The vaccine doesn’t keep you from getting or spreading COVID. What is the point of the vaccine if it doesn’t actually work? A vaccinated White House official, as well as a vaccinated aide for House Speaker Pelosi, tested positive for COVID after attending the same event. Our leaders want us to be vaccinated but half of them won’t get it themselves because it doesn’t work. There are so many cases of people catching and spreading COVID after being vaccinated.
White House Leaders Don’t Have to be Vaccinated
Many people have worried about the Biden administration not telling the whole truth about COVID cases in and around the Whitehouse. “According to an agreement we made during the transition, we committed we would release information proactively,” Psaki said. She added later they would “continue to abide by that commitment.” The biggest question the people have is why do some jobs and schools make it mandatory for us to be vaccinated to be employed or attend but our leaders aren’t held to the same standard? Press secretary Jen Psaki said every White House official has been offered a COVID vaccine but it was not required. “No, we have not mandated it,” Psaki said. Psaki did not say how many White House officials have been vaccinated. Officials hope FDA approval will make people more comfortable with getting the vaccine. Would FDA approval mean more people find themselve required to have the vaccine? These hypotheticals could be reality sooner than later.
The New York Times says the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine could receive full approval from the FDA. Many employers have feared lawsuits when it comes to requiring the vaccine but FDA approval could mean they become confident in pushing the requirements. Google, Netflix, and many other companies have announced that employees must be vaccinated. What happens when smaller and smaller companies require the vaccination and you have to have it in order to be employed?
Written by: Erinn Malloy
