ST. LOUIS — One of the St. Louis area's largest hospital systems released an update on how many people in its workforce are now vaccinated against COVID-19. In a release on Thursday, Mercy said nearly 100% of employees are vaccinated.
Mercy said there are employees who did get a religious or medical exemption, but the hospital did not disclose how many. Mercy also said those employees have to "undergo rigorous masking and protective equipment protocols and frequent testing."
Of the 40,000 Mercy employees, about 800 did not get vaccinated. That's about 2% of Mercy's workforce.
Oct. 1 was the deadline for Mercy employees to get the COVID-19 vaccine or an exemption, or be placed on a 28-day unpaid suspension. That suspension was officially up on Thursday.
“We have done everything possible to assist our co-workers in doing the right thing for our communities and for each other,” said Dr. Jeff Ciaramita, Mercy’s chief physician executive and senior vice president, in a press release. “Ultimately, it was their decision. Like the flu shot, which is also required, we know this is the only decision for a health care organization.”
Other area hospital systems have also required employees to get the COVID-19 vaccine, including SSM Health, BJC HealthCare and St. Luke's.
