health care workers

About a quarter of U.S. health care workers have refused the COVID-19 vaccine as of July. They share demographic traits with other unvaccinated people and are putting hospitals in a tough spot.

Prior to the Biden administration annoucing national requirements for health workers, hospitals in this part of Florida have taken different approaches to mask and vaccine mandates.

French law had set a Sept. 15 deadline for the country's 2.7 million health care workers to get vaccinated. The ones who didn't get a jab were suspended, the country's health minister says.

BayCare's CEO issued a “letter to the community” that described a “conundrum” that hospitals have faced because of severe staffing shortages during the pandemic.

It’s a stark contrast from the beginning of the vaccine rollout when first responders were prioritized for shots.

"One nurse was so upset, she looked at me with tears and she said, 'You know, I can turn in my badge now and go home. I can’t do this.' " recalls June Brown, of Osceola Regional Medical Center,

With little relief in sight, there are no easy answers when it comes to hospital staffing, says Justin Senior, CEO of the Safety Net Hospital Alliance of Florida.

The federal announcement that nursing homes relying on Medicaid and Medicare funding must require staff members to get vaccinated will have a ripple effect through Florida.

Justin Senior, CEO of the Safety Net Hospital Alliance of Florida, explains how hospitals are responding in an interview with WMFE's Intersection

The report covering a four-week period also showed Florida facilities had the second-lowest worker vaccination rate and lagged in vaccinating residents