{"id":68395,"date":"2021-06-09T13:55:22","date_gmt":"2021-06-09T17:55:22","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/stateofthenation.co\/?p=68395"},"modified":"2021-06-09T13:55:49","modified_gmt":"2021-06-09T17:55:49","slug":"sue-this-texas-hospital-its-illegal-to-fire-an-employee-for-not-receiving-an-experimental-covid-vaccine","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/stateofthenation.co\/?p=68395","title":{"rendered":"SUE THIS TEXAS HOSPITAL! It&#8217;s illegal to fire an employee for not receiving an experimental Covid vaccine."},"content":{"rendered":"<h1><strong>178 health care workers suspended from Houston Methodist hospital system for refusing COVID-19 vaccination<\/strong><\/h1>\n<p><!--more-->John Bacon<br \/>\nUSA TODAY<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"USATODAY-Embed Player\" width=\"540\" height=\"350\" frameborder=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\" allowfullscreen=\"true\" marginheight=\"0\" marginwidth=\"0\" src=\"https:\/\/uw-media.usatoday.com\/embed\/video\/7606015002?placement=snow-embed\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">Scores of workers at a Houston hospital system have been suspended and face being fired for refusing the COVID-19 vaccination, a controversial\u00a0<a class=\"gnt_ar_b_a\" href=\"https:\/\/www.usatoday.com\/in-depth\/news\/investigations\/2021\/06\/03\/covid-19-vaccines-refused-surprising-number-hospital-workers\/7432058002\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-t-l=\":b|e|inline click|${u}\">company mandate<\/a>\u00a0that has drawn protests and an outcry from those facing termination.<\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">Houston Methodist CEO Dr. Marc Boom said the 178 workers\u00a0represent less than 1% of almost 25,000 employees.<\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">&#8220;We are nearly 100% compliant with our COVID-19 vaccine mandate,&#8221; Boom said in an email to staff Tuesday. &#8220;Houston Methodist is officially the first hospital system in the country to achieve this goal for the benefit of its patients.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">Boom said 27 of the 178 suspended workers have received one dose of vaccine, and that he is hopeful they will get the second dose. All are suspended for two weeks and are set to be fired if they fail to be fully vaccinated.<\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">&#8220;I wish the number could be zero, but unfortunately, a small number of individuals have decided not to put their patients first,&#8221; Boom said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\"><a class=\"gnt_ar_b_a\" href=\"https:\/\/www.usatoday.com\/in-depth\/news\/investigations\/2021\/06\/03\/covid-19-vaccines-refused-surprising-number-hospital-workers\/7432058002\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-t-l=\":b|e|inline click|${u}\"><strong>First in line, still no shot:<\/strong>\u00a0Surprising number of hospital workers refuse vaccines<\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">An additional 285 employees received a medical or religious exemption, and 332 were granted deferrals for pregnancy and other reasons, Boom said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">&#8220;I feel betrayed a little bit,&#8221;\u00a0Amanda Rivera told\u00a0<a class=\"gnt_ar_b_a\" href=\"https:\/\/www.khou.com\/article\/news\/local\/houston-methodist-hospital-workers-walkout-vaccine-requirement\/285-cc9498e3-8b96-493e-b258-d81280ffd690\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-t-l=\":b|e|inline click|${u}\">KHOU-TV<\/a>\u00a0as she left the building Monday. &#8220;I worked in the ER. It was crazy during the pandemic. We were short-staffed. The hospital was over capacity with patients. It was just a lot. Now for them to come and do this is like a slap in the face.&#8221;<\/p>\n<figure class=\"gnt_em gnt_em_img\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"gnt_em_img_i\" src=\"https:\/\/www.gannett-cdn.com\/presto\/2021\/06\/09\/USAT\/e9a9d051-1a31-4b49-8e33-9f4da4b16eaf-houston_methodist.jpg?width=660&amp;height=456&amp;fit=crop&amp;format=pjpg&amp;auto=webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.gannett-cdn.com\/presto\/2021\/06\/09\/USAT\/e9a9d051-1a31-4b49-8e33-9f4da4b16eaf-houston_methodist.jpg?width=1320&amp;height=912&amp;fit=crop&amp;format=pjpg&amp;auto=webp 2x\" alt=\"Protesters wave signs at Houston Methodist Baytown Hospital in Baytown, Texas, on Monday, June 7, 2021.\" data-g-r=\"lazy\" \/><\/p>\n<div class=\"gnt_em_img_ccw gnt_em_img_ccw__cap gnt_em_img_ccw__crd\" data-c-caption=\"Protesters wave signs at Houston Methodist Baytown Hospital in Baytown, Texas, on Monday, June 7, 2021.\" data-c-credit=\"Yi-Chin Lee, AP\"><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">Hospital workers across the nation risked their lives during the pandemic, and many died of the virus.\u00a0Yet a recent\u00a0<a class=\"gnt_ar_b_a\" href=\"https:\/\/www.usatoday.com\/in-depth\/news\/investigations\/2021\/06\/03\/covid-19-vaccines-refused-surprising-number-hospital-workers\/7432058002\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-t-l=\":b|e|inline click|${u}\">USA TODAY survey<\/a>\u00a0of some of the largest hospital networks and public hospitals in the country reveal staff vaccination rates vary widely, ranging from 51% to 91%.<\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">Last week, Indiana University Health\u00a0announced that it will require\u00a0its 36,000 employees\u00a0<a class=\"gnt_ar_b_a\" href=\"https:\/\/www.usatoday.com\/story\/news\/health\/2021\/06\/01\/iu-health-require-covid-19-vaccines-employees-indianapolis-indiana\/5291181001\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-t-l=\":b|e|inline click|${u}\">to be vaccinated against COVID-19<\/a> by September, calling the mandate a &#8220;safe and effective way to protect patients&#8221; and protect the community.<\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">&#8220;Requiring vaccinations for healthcare employees is not new or unprecedented,&#8221; IU Health said in a statement.<\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">Hundreds of colleges and universities are requiring vaccinations\u00a0<a class=\"gnt_ar_b_a\" href=\"https:\/\/www.usatoday.com\/story\/news\/education\/2021\/05\/30\/covid-vaccine-college-require-mandate-fall-semester-exception\/5244826001\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-t-l=\":b|e|inline click|${u}\">for the coming school year.<\/a>\u00a0Many nursing homes, hot spots early in the pandemic, also are requiring inoculation from the coronavirus.<\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">The Houston Methodist controversy &#8220;foreshadows the coming months,&#8221; said Ogbonnaya Omenka, an associate professor and public health specialist at Butler University in Indianapolis. Mandates that may seem like the obvious choice to many people must be &#8220;implemented within a human context,&#8221; he told USA TODAY.<\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">&#8220;As businesses and schools return to full operations, they have to decide what to do about their vaccination policy,&#8221; he said. &#8220;It is not going to be an easy process.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">Mandatory vaccination is not popular with lawmakers in Texas. Gov.\u00a0Greg Abbott\u00a0signed a law Monday denying state contracts to businesses that require customers to be vaccinated. Vaccine &#8220;passports&#8221; also are prohibited.<\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">\u201cTexas is open 100%, and we want to make sure you have the freedom to go where you want without limits,\u201d Abbott said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has issued guidance saying employers have the right to require COVID-19 vaccination, citing a &#8220;direct threat&#8221; to others in the workplace. Still, more than 100 Houston Methodist employees filed suit against the hospital system last month\u00a0saying the vaccines are &#8220;experimental&#8221; and that the mandatory vaccination policy is unfair.<\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">&#8220;I cried the whole way out,&#8221; Jennifer Bridges, a nurse involved in the\u00a0lawsuit, told KHOU-TV as she exited the hospital Monday.<\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">Boom said the science, along with data from 300 million doses already distributed\u00a0in the U.S. alone, proves the vaccines are safe and necessary &#8220;if we are going to turn the corner against COVID-19.&#8221; The number of both positive cases and hospitalizations continue to drop across the nation continue to decline, he said,\u00a0proving the vaccines\u2019 effectiveness.<\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">Boom said the mandate has been challenged by the media and some outspoken employees. But he said several other major health care centers have followed Houston Methodist&#8217;s lead.<\/p>\n<p class=\"gnt_ar_b_p\">&#8220;As the first hospital system to mandate COVID-19 vaccines we were prepared for this,&#8221; he said. &#8220;The criticism is sometimes the price we pay for leading medicine.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>___<br \/>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/www.usatoday.com\/story\/news\/health\/2021\/06\/09\/houston-methodist-hospital-workers-refuse-covid-vaccine-get-suspended\/7616446002\/\">https:\/\/www.usatoday.com\/story\/news\/health\/2021\/06\/09\/houston-methodist-hospital-workers-refuse-covid-vaccine-get-suspended\/7616446002\/<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>178 health care workers suspended from Houston Methodist hospital system for refusing COVID-19 vaccination<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-68395","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateofthenation.co\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/68395","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateofthenation.co\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateofthenation.co\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateofthenation.co\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateofthenation.co\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=68395"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/stateofthenation.co\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/68395\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateofthenation.co\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=68395"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateofthenation.co\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=68395"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateofthenation.co\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=68395"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}