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UnityPoint Health Requiring COVID-19 Vaccines For All Employees

Jeff Smudde / WCBU

UnityPoint Health is requiring all of its more than 33,000 employees to get a COVID-19 vaccination by Nov. 1.

Employees who choose not to get vaccinated face voluntary resignation or termination. There will be medical or religious exemptions, as well as temporary exemptions for pregnant employees.

In central Illinois, UnityPoint operates Methodist, Proctor, and Pekin hospitals, and other hospitals in Illinois, Iowa, and Wisconsin.

Dr. Samer Sader is UnityPoint's chief medical officer in the Peoria area. He said the the health care organization originally intended to mandate vaccines only after full FDA approval, but multiple factors led to the requirement to be implemented sooner.

"It appears that the FDA does not have a specific timeline in mind, and as time has gone by, the amount of literature and outcomes and overall safety of the vaccines has become more evident," he said. "All these things together, along with the increase in the Delta variant and a resurgence of COVID in our communities, have pushed us towards making the decision at this time."

Sader said about 60% of UnityPoint's Peoria-area employees are currently vaccinated.

"This is being done with the goal of keeping our team members, our patients, our community's health in mind," said Sader, adding another part of the reasoning is a tired workforce, with employees working extra hours or covering shifts for others who are out for COVID-19 related reasons.

"It's taken its toll. It's really been an 18-month battle in the hospitals," Sader said. "And we're hoping that this allows our workforce to remain available for the care of our patients."

OSF HealthCare is requiring all of its employees to get the COVID-19 vaccine by the end of September.

Tim is the News Director at WCBU Peoria Public Radio.