All healthcare workers in New York State will have to be vaccinated against Covid-19, Gov Andrew M. Cuomo said Monday, effective Sept. 27.
The order applies to staff at hospitals and long-term care facilities, including nursing homes, adult care, and other congregate care settings, with limited exceptions for religious or medical reasons.
To date, 75% of the state’s ~450,000 hospital workers, 74% of the state’s ~30,000 adult care facility workers, and 68% of the state’s ~145,500 nursing home workers have completed their vaccine series. Cuomo’s office said the incoming administration of Lt. Gov. Kathy Hochul, who will succeed Cuomo after he leaves office under a cloud invoving sex-harassment complaints, had been briefed.
Dr. Nick Fitterman, executive director of Huntington Hospital, welcomed the announcement.
Cuomo also announced that the Department of Health has authorized a third COVID-19 vaccine dose for New Yorkers with compromised immune systems, following the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s recommendation last week. Eligible New Yorkers can receive their third dose 28 days after the completion of their two-dose vaccine series, effective immediately.
The CDC is currently recommending that moderately to severely immunocompromised people receive an additional dose, including people who have:
- Been receiving active cancer treatment for tumors or cancers of the blood;
- Received an organ transplant and are taking medications to suppress the immune system;
- Received a stem cell transplant within the last 2 years or are taking medicine to suppress the immune system;
- Moderate or severe primary immunodeficiency (such as DiGeorge syndrome, Wiskott-Aldrich syndrome);
- Advanced or untreated HIV infection;
- Active treatment with high-dose corticosteroids, cancer chemotherapy that causes sever immunosuppression, or other medications that may suppress your immune response.
New Yorkers should contact their healthcare provider about whether getting an additional dose is appropriate for them at this time.