"Do I or don't I?" Some Texas hospitals grapple with new mandatory vaccine rule

[TexasTowelie]

by Karen Brooks Harper, Texas Tribune


Hundreds of hospitals across Texas on Friday were grappling with how to respond to an announcement from President Joe Biden earlier this week that they would be required to make vaccines mandatory for their employees — even as Texas Gov. Greg Abbott vows to fight the new rule.

While some, like Texas Children’s Hospital and Houston Methodist, had already announced such policies, the state’s roughly 120 public hospitals have so far been banned from enacting mandates under an executive order by Abbott — and find themselves in a far more complicated position.

“I’ve got President Biden telling me he’s going to mandate it, but I have Gov. Abbott who says I cannot mandate it,” said Adam Willman, chief executive officer of Goodall Witcher Healthcare public hospital in Clifton, outside of Waco. “Do I or don’t I? So I’m just kind of waiting for the dust to settle from yesterday to really sit down with my administrative team and see where we go from here.”

On Thursday, as deaths from the highly contagious COVID-19 delta variant climbed nationwide and new cases continued to put pressure on hospital intensive care units and emergency rooms, Biden announced that all businesses, public and private, with more than 100 employees will be required to mandate vaccinations for their employees.

Read more: https://www.texastribune.org/2021/09/10/coronavirus-texas-vaccine-mandate-hospitals/

[Blues Heron]

1. How you could hesitate on this for a second will always mystify me

“I’ve got President Biden telling me he’s going to mandate it, but I have Gov. Abbott who says I cannot mandate it,” said Adam Willman, chief executive officer of Goodall Witcher Healthcare public hospital in Clifton, outside of Waco. “Do I or don’t I?

This guy has no business being in health care, this is a farce.

[LeftInTX]

3. They will lose funding from the state if they mandate it...

I'm not sure of the CMS penalty, but all public hospitals in Texas will lose their state funding.

[FloridaBlues]

2. I guess they will find out OSHA overrules state EO.

Surprised their lawyers don’t know that. The thing is people that quit their job won’t be able to go next door to another hospital or nursing home same rules will apply or take the test frequently which causes more money and time for the hospitals.