Mayo Clinic says staff must get vaccinated, or face termination
Mayo Clinic is tightening its employee vaccine policy.
On Wednesday, the Clinic informed unvaccinated staff that they must get a Covid-19 vaccine, or apply for a religious or medical exemption by Nov. 8.
Those who remain unvaccinated and have not been approved for an exemption by Dec. 3 will be placed on unpaid leave. By Jan. 3, 2022, workers not in compliance with the mandate will be terminated, the Clinic said.
The announcement from Mayo, which affects about 8,000 employees system-wide, follows a Biden administration plan to require vaccination of most workers within facilities that receive funding from Medicare and Medicaid. Those rules are expected to take effect later this year.
Prior to the Biden plan, Mayo had adopted a more relaxed policy requiring all employees to either get vaccinated or complete education modules. Since that program was announced in July, Mayo says its overall staff vaccination rates for Covid-19 climbed from 77.4 percent to 87.7 percent.
“It's encouraging,” a Mayo spokesperson said of the increase. “However, based on the percentage of staff who remain unvaccinated and in consideration of the safety of our patients, staff, visitors and communities, Mayo Clinic is transitioning to the next phase of its Covid-19 vaccination program, with vaccination required to continue to work at Mayo Clinic.”
Mayo is not alone in implementing a vaccine requirement. The area’s other major health care provider, Olmsted Medical Center, is giving employees until Oct. 15 to come into compliance with its vaccine mandate. Staff who are not vaccinated by that date “will be required to comply with the requirements of a monitoring process until they are fully vaccinated.”
OMC employees also have the choice to submit a request for a medical or religious exemption. However, if the exemption is declined after committee review, the employee will be required to submit a plan to be vaccinated.
Sean Baker is a Rochester journalist and the founder of Med City Beat.
