University of Chicago Medical Center to require COVID-19 vaccination for all employees

In an effort to ensure the safety of patients and staff, the University of Chicago Medical Center (UCMC) has announced it is requiring all employees to get vaccinated against COVID-19.

UCMC joins other hospitals across the country that have looked at the data on safety and effectiveness of the available COVID-19 vaccines in determining the mandate, which is consistent with the current vaccination policy that already requires employees be vaccinated against influenza every year.

“Since the start of the pandemic, our organization and its employees have made unrelenting commitments to the greatest healthcare challenge of our lifetimes,” said Kenneth S. Polonsky, Dean and Executive Vice President for Medical Affairs at the University of Chicago. “Requiring COVID-19 vaccinations will allow us to continue to do our part in the ongoing efforts to end the pandemic and to protect our patients, their families, our employees and the broader South Side community.”

Details about this policy will be shared with employees in the coming days, including the grace period for compliance with the vaccination requirement and the process for applying for religious or medical exemptions.

Evidence has shown that vaccination is the most effective way to prevent contracting COVID-19 and avoiding severe illness and even death. Of the more than 18,000 COVID-19 deaths in May 2021, 99.2% of individuals who died were not vaccinated, according to an analysis of government data. Of the 107,000 COVID-19 hospitalizations in that month, 98.9% of the patients were not vaccinated.

“At our Medical Center, 77% of the roughly 10,000-member workforce has been fully vaccinated; we would like to see every eligible individual receive protection against the coronavirus and the more contagious Delta variant,” UCMC President Tom Jackiewicz said. “Thanks to the efforts of our employees, we have been able to uphold our healthcare mission despite the significant challenges posed by the virus. Central to the success of our efforts has been our commitment to creating a safe environment for both patients and staff.”

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About the University of Chicago Medicine & Biological Sciences

The University of Chicago Medicine, with a history dating back to 1927, is one of the nation’s leading academic health systems. It unites the missions of the University of Chicago Medical Center, Pritzker School of Medicine and the Biological Sciences Division. Twelve Nobel Prize winners in physiology or medicine have been affiliated with the University of Chicago Medicine. Its main Hyde Park campus is home to the Center for Care and Discovery, Bernard Mitchell Hospital, Comer Children’s Hospital and the Duchossois Center for Advanced Medicine. It also has ambulatory facilities in Orland Park, South Loop and River East as well as affiliations and partnerships that create a regional network of care. UChicago Medicine offers a full range of specialty-care services for adults and children through more than 40 institutes and centers including an NCI-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center. Together with Harvey-based Ingalls Memorial, UChicago Medicine has 1,296 licensed beds, nearly 1,300 attending physicians, over 2,800 nurses and about 970 residents and fellows.

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