Mass. Hospitals Prepare to Fire Hundreds of Unvaccinated Workers

Massachusetts hospitals are preparing to fire hundreds of employees who fail to comply with COVID-19 vaccination requirements designed to protect patient safety.

Officials at hospitals across the state told The Boston Globe they don't expect the number of employees who are fired because of vaccine mandates to result in cuts to patient services, but they are stepping up recruitment and retention efforts just in case.

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At Mass General Brigham, the state's largest hospital system, more than 95% of employees have been vaccinated, executives said, but about 4,000 have not yet received their shots or provided proof of vaccination ahead of the system's Oct. 15 deadline. The system has about 74,000 employees.

The goal of the vaccine mandate is to protect patients, Chief Human Resources Officer Rosemary Sheehan said, adding that she hopes the number of workers fired will be "hundreds and not close to a thousand."

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Beth Israel Lahey Health and Mass. General Brigham -- two of the biggest hospital systems in Massachusetts with more than 100,000 employees -- are telling doctors, nurses and staff they must be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 by October.

"This is a very difficult time for everyone, and we're trying to respond with what's best for our patients," Sheehan said. "That has been the beacon that has driven all of our decisions."

At Beth Israel Lahey Health, 91% of the 35,000-member workforce has been vaccinated, but about 3,000 employees have yet to comply with an Oct. 31 deadline.

CEO Dr. Kevin Tabb said he expects most will get shots by then, but a few hundred could lose their jobs.

Worcester-based UMass Memorial Health Care is giving employees until Nov. 1 to get shots. So far, about 90% have been vaccinated, a spokesperson said. Terminations could affect patient care, Tony Berry said. The system has about 13,000 workers.

"We will do everything we can to not have to resort to program closures, but ... we may have no other choice," he said.

Healthcare workers at UMass Memorial Medical Center in Worcester will rally Sunday morning to protest the hospital's COVID-19 vaccine mandate.

The experience at some hospitals whose vaccination deadlines have passed shows that near-universal compliance is possible.

At the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, more than 99% of workers have been vaccinated, while 54 people have been suspended without pay for refusing the vaccine. They have two weeks to begin their vaccinations or leave their jobs, the hospital said.

More than 99% of the roughly 12,000 employees at Springfield-based Baystate Health also received their shots by the Oct. 1 deadline, while 145 people were placed on leave and have two weeks to get vaccinated, officials said.