Veterans Affairs to mandate COVID vaccine for health care personnel, first such mandate for federal agency
Veterans Affairs Secretary Denis McDonough on Monday made COVID-19 vaccinations mandatory for all VA health care personnel, the first such mandate by a federal agency.
The mandate includes physicians, dentists, nurses and others who work in patient-facing roles.
The VA said it was taking this “necessary step” to keep the veterans it serves “safe.” The VA said each employee will have eight weeks to be fully vaccinated.
“We’re mandating vaccines for Title 38 employees because it’s the best way to keep Veterans safe, especially as the Delta variant spreads across the country,” McDonough said Monday.
“Whenever a Veteran or a VA employee sets foot in a VA facility, they deserve to know that we have done everything in our power to protect them from COVID-19,” he continued. “With this mandate, we can once again make—and keep—that fundamental promise.”
www.foxnews.com/politics/veterans-affairs-covid-vaccine-mandate-health-care-personnel