WASHINGTON—President Biden met Wednesday with the chief executives of United Airlines Holdings Inc. and Kaiser Permanente in a bid to encourage more companies to follow their lead and require workers to get vaccinated against Covid-19.
Howard University President Wayne Frederick and Diane Sumpter, a small business leader from South Carolina, attended the virtual meeting alongside United CEO Scott Kirby and Kaiser Permanente CEO Gregory Adams, the White House said.
The companies and university have all said staff must be vaccinated, and Howard is also requiring students to get the shots. Mr. Biden highlighted the four as a model for other private-sector leaders, as officials race to get more Americans vaccinated and slow the spread of the highly transmissible Delta variant, which has triggered a rise in cases and hospitalizations across the country.
He also asked the attendees to talk to others in their industries about the steps they have taken and encourage more action to boost vaccination rates, the White House statement said.
A White House official said the participants reflected four sectors—large corporations, small businesses, healthcare providers, and colleges and universities—that the administration sees as pillars in inoculating the U.S. against the virus.
