BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — Kaleida Health issued an update on its COVID-19 vaccination rate as the New York State COVID-19 vaccine mandate went into place Monday for health care workers.
According to Kaleida its overall workforce vaccination rate as of 6:00 p.m. Monday was 94% and the vaccination rate for phase 1a workers, also known as patient-facing staff, was 97%.
Approximately 200 employees have submitted a request for a religious exemption, which according to Kaleida is considered conditional pending the outcome of a federal court case, and 100 employees "have been or will be separated from the organization this week due to lack of vaccination."
Kaleida said more than 400 employees have either received at least one shot, been fully vaccinated or reported their vaccination status since September 22.
For those dedicated staff who got vaccinated to help protect our patients, our colleagues and our community, we say thank you. The Kaleida Health team has worked diligently the past 10-14 days working through contingency plans and going through various scenarios to ensure safe patient care and operations. This is on top of our all-out effort to get everyone vaccinated, deal with the latest COVID-19 numbers plus run our normal operations.
ECMC also provided an update on its COVID-19 vaccination rate Monday. According to a spokesperson, it has placed approximately 7% of its total workforce on unpaid leave as a result of New York State's COVID-19 vaccine mandate. You can find more information here.
