Health care employers should mandate vaccinations for all their workers, a coalition of leading medical groups said Monday, as cases of Covid-19 continue to spike across the nation.
While 60 percent of the adult U.S. population has been fully vaccinated, according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data, millions have still not received those lifesaving shots, leaving the nation vulnerable to the fast-spreading delta variant of the virus.
“As the health care community leads the way in requiring vaccines for our employees, we hope all other employers across the country will follow our lead and implement effective policies to encourage vaccination,” according to a joint statement from 56 health care associations.
“The health and safety of U.S. workers, families, communities, and the nation depends on it.”
The coalition includes the American Medical Association, the American College of Physicians, the American Nursing Association, the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American College of Surgeons and the American Public Health Association.
Requiring vaccination for employment is the “logical fulfillment of the ethical commitment” to all patients in their care, according to the groups.
“Our health care organizations and societies advocate that all health care and long-term care employers require their workers to receive the COVID-19 vaccine,” they wrote in the joint statement.
Source: | This article originally belongs to Nbcnews.com