NY Health Department Requires Flu Shot or Masks for Nursing Home Workers
The Syracuse Post-Standard had an interesting story last month about health care workers at nursing homes this flu season, saying all employees are now vaccinated or required to wear masks.
The newspaper reported that the state Health Department wanted to force all workers to get vaccines, however, labor unions opposed the idea. Instead, the state has ordered nurses and other healthcare workers who refuse to be vaccinated to wear masks over their noses and mouths.
“The strategy is working,” the Post-Standard reported. “Several Central New York hospitals that tried out the mask requirement during last year’s flu season saw dramatic increases in the number of workers getting the shot.”
“In a trial run of the mask rule during last year’s flu season, St. Joseph’s Hospital Health Center in Syracuse saw its employee vaccination rate soar to 89 percent, up from 59.5 percent the year before,” the Post-Standard reported.
Call a Rockland County Nursing Home Lawyer
We applaud the efforts of the Health Department for implementing this regulation. The flu is a respiratory disease that is highly contagious—an outbreak in a facility that houses elderly or venerable residents could end in tragedy.
If you have a loved one that has been injured because of nursing home abuse or neglect, contact our firm for a free consultation. Our offices are located in Bardonia, Bronx and New York City, and we serve residents of Bronx County, Rockland County and the entire Hudson Valley. We have obtained multi-million settlements and verdicts for our clients.
The newspaper reported that the state Health Department wanted to force all workers to get vaccines, however, labor unions opposed the idea. Instead, the state has ordered nurses and other healthcare workers who refuse to be vaccinated to wear masks over their noses and mouths.
“The strategy is working,” the Post-Standard reported. “Several Central New York hospitals that tried out the mask requirement during last year’s flu season saw dramatic increases in the number of workers getting the shot.”
“In a trial run of the mask rule during last year’s flu season, St. Joseph’s Hospital Health Center in Syracuse saw its employee vaccination rate soar to 89 percent, up from 59.5 percent the year before,” the Post-Standard reported.
Call a Rockland County Nursing Home Lawyer
We applaud the efforts of the Health Department for implementing this regulation. The flu is a respiratory disease that is highly contagious—an outbreak in a facility that houses elderly or venerable residents could end in tragedy.
If you have a loved one that has been injured because of nursing home abuse or neglect, contact our firm for a free consultation. Our offices are located in Bardonia, Bronx and New York City, and we serve residents of Bronx County, Rockland County and the entire Hudson Valley. We have obtained multi-million settlements and verdicts for our clients.
[ Did You Know: According to the CDC, the number of annual flu-related deaths in the United States ranged from 3,000 to 49,000 between 1977 and 2007.]
Adams Law Firm, P.C. – Rockland County Nursing Home Attorneys
Source: http://www.syracuse.com/news/index.ssf/2013/10/new_ultimatum_for_cny_health_care_workers_this_flu_season_get_a_shot_or_wear_a_m.html 