The Vermont Medical Society (VMS), which represents 2,400 physicians and physician assistants across Vermont, has signed a joint statement urging that employers mandate COVID-19 vaccination for all workers in health care and long-term care settings.
The joint statement was issued early last week in response to the recent resurgence of COVID-19, driven by the delta variant, and has received support from over 100 health care organizations and societies.
After unanimous approval from the VMS Council, the VMS joins health care organizations from across the nation in becoming a signatory, including the American Medical Association, the American Hospital Association, the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Psychiatric Association, and the American Nurses Association.
With hospitalizations and deaths once again rising throughout the United States due to COVID-19, VMS officials say vaccination is a proven, effective path to put the pandemic behind us and to avoid a return to stringent public health measures.
However, many health care and long-term care workers remain unvaccinated. By requiring all health care workers to be vaccinated against COVID-19, VMS added, they will better protect themselves and their colleagues from the virus, along with those who are vulnerable, like children and the immunocompromised, their families, and the patients they care for.