New York health care workers will be required to get COVID booster
NEW YORK N.Y. — During her Friday press conference, New York State Governor Kathy Hochul announced a new booster mandate for health care workers.
Health care workers will be given two weeks to get the shot after they are eligible. Only medical exemptions will be allowed.
The move comes months after the state implemented a COVID-19 vaccine mandate.
The Public Health and Planning Council must approve it before it goes into effect, but the governor says she's confident it will be approved swiftly.
"We are the first state in the nation to institute this. This has been such an important priority," said Gov. Hochul. "We've already been seeing what is happening in health care facilities. Staff is getting sick. They are leaving. We need them to get well - and the best fortification they can to do that means getting a booster shot as well."
Hochul also said Friday the state is inching toward a plateau in COVID cases with hospitalizations starting to level off.
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During the press conference, Gov. Hochul and NYS Health Commissioner Dr. Mary Basset expressed increased concern over an increase in pediatric COVID-19 cases.
According to Dr. Basset, pediatric cases are showing the same pattern of escalation as omicron cases across the state.
Dr. Basset says the number of children being affected by these severe cases is small, as about 570 children have been hospitalized in the past month.
However, according to Dr. Basset, the rate of increase is more concerning than the number of children being affected.
Dr. Basset also shared that the vast majority of children being hospitalized are unvaccinated against the virus.
She urged parents and guardians to get children vaccinated and boosted when they are eligible.
During her press conference, Gov. Hochul also urged New Yorkers not to go to emergency rooms to get a COVID test.
“Too many New Yorkers are going to emergency rooms to get a test,” said the governor. “Please don’t overburden our emergency rooms.”
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Gov. Hochul says in those situations, the state will be sending more test kits to hospitals so individuals that show up can get tested in the parking lot rather than using hospital resources.
The governor says the state has ordered another 12 million COVID-19 tests to be distributed as well as 1.2 million masks.
According to Gov. Hochul, all public and charter schools across the state now have enough tests to implement the test-to-stay program to keep kids in school.
Gov. Hochul also announced new public COVID-19 testing sites will open at SUNY campuses including Morrisville State College and the SUNY Polytechnic Institute.
During her press conference, the governor announced updated nursing home visitation rules, sharing that visitors must wear surgical masks rather than cloth.
Nursing home visitors must also show a negative COVID-19 test that was taken within 24 hours.
According to the governor, the state will provide COVID tests for visitors to use preferably at home or in the parking lot before a visit.
Watch the full press conference below:
