Dozens of medical groups have banded together in support of mandatory COVID-19 vaccines for healthcare workers.
The groups include the American Medical Association, American College of Physicians, American College of Surgeons and numerous others. The groups penned a letter in support of mandatory vaccines, stressing the recent surge in COVID-19 cases in the U.S. over the last several weeks.
The letter advocates for all healthcare and long-term care employers to require their workers to receive the COVID-19 vaccine. The AMA recently stated its support for mandatory vaccines in a recent interview.
More than 608,000 Americans have died due to COVID-19, and more than 34 million cases have been reported in the U.S. over the last 60 days, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
“Vaccination is the primary way to put the pandemic behind us and avoid the return of stringent public health measures,” reads the statement signed by all participating groups.
A vocal portion of healthcare workers is still not vaccinated against the virus, and some in this subgroup say they don’t plan to accede.
The push for vaccinations comes as the FDA is likely to soon grant full approval for the COVID-19 vaccines in the U.S. Currently, vaccines from Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna and Johnson & Johnson are approved under emergency use authorization.
“It is critical that all people in the healthcare workforce get vaccinated against COVID-19 for the safety of our patients and our colleagues,” Susan R. Bailey, MD, immediate past president of the AMA, wrote in a statement. “With more than 300 million doses administered in the United States and nearly 4 billion doses administered worldwide, we know the vaccines are safe and highly effective at preventing severe illness and death from COVID-19. Increased vaccinations among health care personnel will not only reduce the spread of COVID-19 but also reduce the harmful toll this virus is taking within the healthcare workforce and those we are striving to serve.”
Amy joined TriMed Media as a Senior Writer for HealthExec after covering home care for three years. When not writing about all things healthcare, she fulfills her lifelong dream of becoming a pirate by sailing in regattas and enjoying rum. Fun fact: she sailed 333 miles across Lake Michigan in the Chicago Yacht Club "Race to Mackinac."