On July 26th, Governor Gavin Newsom announced a statewide vaccine mandate for public employees. For individuals who opt-out of inoculation, weekly testing will be required. This mandate will include not only healthcare workers but other employees in “high-risk congregated settings” such as jails, nursing homes, and homeless shelters. Under California’s new directive, over 238,000 employees and approximately two million healthcare workers will be required to show proof of vaccination.
This new directive was established in response to an increase in COVID-19 cases across California. The state’s test positivity rate has increased from .07 percent earlier this summer to 5.3 percent by the end of July.
State officials note that this increase is driven primarily by unvaccinated individuals. While 75 percent of all eligible Californians have received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, only 62 percent are fully vaccinated with little upward growth. In a news release announcing the new policy, governor Gavin Newsom stated that "we are now dealing with a pandemic of the unvaccinated, and it’s going to take renewed efforts to protect Californians from the dangerous delta variant." The highly contagious delta variant makes up 80 percent of COVID-19 cases and mainly affects the unvaccinated population.
Prior to the new statewide mandate, many individual counties in California had revised their guidelines to address the increasing number of COVID-19 cases. Earlier this June, San Francisco County announced plans to implement a similar policy once vaccines receive full FDA approval. Los Angeles County, the most populous county in California, reinstated an indoor mask policy while many other cities are recommending masks to be worn indoors regardless of vaccination status.
Contra Costa County has encouraged employers to set their own workplace safety requirements. Many business owners are concerned with the legal implications surrounding a vaccine mandate. While Dr. Christopher Farnitano, the Contra Costa County health director, has implied there should be consequences for failing to create a safe work environment; health officials have not vocalized if termination for those who fail to comply is appropriate.
Currently, California is the only state set to require proof of vaccination or weekly testing for unvaccinated individuals. While New York City has implemented similar policies for municipal employees such as police officers and teachers, the state of New York has not yet followed. Bill de Blasio, the mayor of New York, has outlined specific consequences for those individuals who fail to comply with the city’s new directive. De Blasio has clearly stated that employees who opt-out of the vaccine and refuse to wear a mask indoors will not be allowed to work and will therefore not be compensated.
Although California has expressed the intent to establish a vaccine verification process, the state has not explained the specifics on how this will be enforced or the immediate consequences of failing to comply. While the new mandate is set to take effect next month, many questions remain unanswered.
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