Vaccine mandate deadline for health care workers arrives Thursday

The deadline is here for health care workers to get vaccinated against COVID-19. Anyone who works in a facility that takes Medicare and Medicaid is required to have at least one dose by Thursday, and some think it could cause problems in a system already stretched thin.

A spokesperson with the Center for Medicaid and Medicare says providers who receive this federal funding must have plans and procedures for staff vaccinations in place and must make sure their staff has received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine by today.
When I asked that spokesperson – what the consequences would be if a provider did not follow those rules – They say consequences for nursing homes and home health agencies not heeding the deadline could range from fines to termination from the Medicare and Medicaid program.

For hospitals, the only consequence is termination, but the spokesperson says that would generally only occur after a hospital was given a chance to comply.

A spokeswoman for the Florida Health Care Association, the largest nursing home group in the state, says this mandate comes at a time when nursing homes are already experiencing worker shortages. She said they’re already limiting admissions, so this mandate may affect access to care for seniors.

A spokesperson for the Agency of Health Care Administration, however, says the agency will continue to follow Florida law, which prohibits blanket vaccine mandates and therefore won’t allow the agency to enforce one.

The Florida Health Care Association says, starting Thursday, if health care workers don’t comply, they won’t necessarily be terminated right away, but they also won’t be put on the schedule to work in the facility.