Cedar Rapids Hospital Nears 100 Percent Vaccine Compliance

Last week, a bill was passed in the Iowa legislature for businesses who would like to require their employees to take the COVID-19 vaccine. The bill requires exemptions to that rule for religious and medical reasons. Learn more about it here.

Getting the vaccine is a hugely personal and polarizing choice, leaving some workers willing to lose their jobs for violating their employer's requirement to take it. But a Cedar Rapids hospital that mandates the shot for its staff reports almost full compliance.

UnityPoint Health-St. Luke's Hospital in Cedar Rapids says 99.5 percent of its staff have now been vaccinated, and according to KCRG that's just two days after their official mandate was put in place. Tuesday, November 1 was the deadline and those who didn't choose to comply were said to have been put on administrative leave so as to investigate the religious and medical exemptions in question.

A statement from St. Luke's touted the response rate from staff and their belief in the effectiveness of the vaccines.

We are pleased to share that currently 99.5 percent of UnityPoint Health – St. Luke’s Hospital team members are now compliant with our vaccination policy. Compliance with our vaccination policy is defined as completing the COVID-19 vaccination series or qualifying for an approved exemption. Vaccinating team members is a safe and effective way to protect both our staff and patients and help reduce the spread of COVID-19. As we move forward, we continue to emphasize the importance of getting vaccinated against COVID-19. For those in our communities who are eligible, receiving the vaccine is the best way to help keep health care workers healthy, so our teams can focus on providing care to those who need it most

At the same time, news comes from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) that even more individuals are becoming eligible for the vaccine. It was reported in USA Today and other sources that a lighter dose of the Pfizer vaccine can now be administered for children aged 5-11.