Valley Health accelerates staff vaccination deadline – urgency driven by staff quarantine, Delta variant and lagging community vaccination rates

Concerned about a predicted surge in COVID-19 cases locally, Valley Health advised staff earlier today that it has shortened the timeline for employees, affiliated medical providers, and contractors to receive the COVID-19 vaccination. The new policy requiring vaccination remains intact, but staff must now have at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccination by September 7, 2021. (editor’s note: the original first dose deadline was October 1) 

Valley Health President and CEO, Mark Nantz

“I am pleased to see our Valley Health vaccination rate has increased to 75%, and I thank all of you who have chosen to protect yourselves, your patients, and your coworkers,” Valley Health President and CEO Mark Nantz said in a memo to the health system’s 6,300 staff. “We continue to monitor new COVID-19 cases in our community and have seen an increase in caregiver quarantine, due in part to lagging community vaccination, as well as the growing presence of the highly contagious Delta variant. These circumstances compel us to reevaluate our timeline for requiring vaccination for VHS staff.”

Employees who plan to request a religious or medical exemption have until August 16 to file documentation; Valley Health anticipates review and resolution of exemption requests by August 23.

“Many of those infected seek care in our hospitals or visit Valley Health physician offices, clinics, or testing sites for diagnosis and treatment,” Nantz continued. “Each encounter with an infected patient offers COVID-19 the opportunity to spread, and the chance of transmission increases exponentially when our caregivers are unvaccinated. Our vaccination standard is our duty as a healthcare system and our moral responsibility as professionals who prioritize patient, visitor, community, and workforce safety in the midst of a pandemic.”

COVID-19 vaccination is available free of charge at Employee Health locations on each of Valley Health’s six hospital campuses.

(Taken from Valley Health press release)