After the outbreak in the hospital, Mills “seriously considers” vaccination obligations for health care workers in Maine

The Mills administration said Tuesday that the State Hospital Association urged the action and “seriously considered” the obligation to vaccinate health care workers in Maine six weeks after the outbreaks were reported at the two hospitals. rice field.

“(Governor Janet Mills) is seriously considering vaccination requirements for health care workers, which is a measure supported by the Main Hospital Association and the American Medical Association,” Mills spokeswoman Lindsay Crete said. Stated in a statement to. .. “The governor is about that possibility With the Maine Department of Health and Human Services It is the main CDC and will make the final decision in the next few days. “

The mission has been under discussion since June, when Stephen Mishaw, president of the Maine Hospital Association, condemned the issue with state health officials.

Crete says, “Vaccination is the best tool needed to protect the lives and livelihoods of Maine people and put an end to this pandemic. Prevent by healthcare professionals and all qualified Maine people. It’s important to get vaccinated. Healthcare workers play an important role in protecting the health of people in Maine, and all against this dangerous virus, especially given the highly infectious delta mutants. Precautionary measures need to be taken. “

Maine and the country have experienced a surge in COVID-19 cases over the past month, boosted by delta variants. The 7-day average for new cases daily on Tuesday was 138, about seven times the average one month ago.

Portland’s Maine Medical Center reported nine outbreaks among emergency department staff, and Waldo County General Hospital in Belfast reported eight staff cases. The Main CDC is also investigating outbreaks in two care facilities, including 21 in Augusta’s Capitol City Manor and 4 in Gorham House.

Michaux said Tuesday that he was still seeking state-wide missions, except that MHA would recommend all hospital workers to take COVID-19 shots.

“I thought Delta was an incentive,” Michaux said. “Looking at these two outbreaks (in the hospital), it is very urgent for healthcare professionals to achieve this.”

Michaux said a “patient safety ticket” is a state-wide obligation.

“If you want to do this the right way, the state should do this for all health care workers,” he said.

Several other states, such as New York, California, and Washington, are beginning to require vaccines for some or all healthcare professionals. Massachusetts and Connecticut require vaccinations for long-term care and nursing home staff. At least in the other 10 states, unvaccinated health care workers are required not only to wear masks, but also to be tested at least once a week.

Maine Health and Northern Light Health, two major hospital networks in the state, have begun mandates. MaineHealth has set a date of October 1st when 23,000 employees will be fully vaccinated, but Northern Light’s mission will begin once the Food and Drug Administration fully approves the vaccine. The vaccine is currently being used under an emergency use authorization and is expected to be fully approved by the FDA within a few weeks.

Millinocket General Hospital was the first hospital in Maine to require staff vaccination. It took that step day for Northern Wright and Main Health to adopt the policy.

Michaux hopes that other hospitals will establish vaccination requirements, but said it would be better to give uniform authority to health care workers throughout the state.

Meanwhile, the outbreak at Maine Health Hospital should remind employees to fire immediately, said Dr. Dora Anne Mills, Chief Health Improvement Officer and sister of the Governor of Maine Health.

“We sincerely hope that the surge in Delta will convey the message that vaccination should begin as soon as possible,” Mills said. To be fully vaccinated by October 1, workers must be injected within the next two weeks.

Andrew Sousier, a spokesman for Northern Light Health, the parent company of Maine Medical Center in Bangor and Mercy Hospital in Portland, has publicly commented on the state-wide obligation of the COVID-19 vaccine for healthcare professionals. Said not.

“Our focus is on getting employees vaccinated and encouraging vaccination in the community,” Suchet said.

In MainMed, the outbreak is still under investigation by the Main CDC, but hospital officials say some cases were “breakthrough” cases among vaccinated workers.

Todd Ricker, a spokesman for the Maine Nurses Association on behalf of hospital union nurses, said in a statement: Nine registered nurses reportedly tested positive in the emergency department and additional staff reportedly tested positive in another department. We are assessing the situation to see how this happened. “

Mills of Maine Health said the details of the outbreak of Maine Med are still under investigation, but in general, patients are more likely to bring the virus to the hospital because the virus is more circulating in the main. Hospitals test each patient on arrival, but may initially be negative for COVID-19 and then positive, for example, three days after a week of hospitalization.

The positive test triggers a test for all health care workers who have been in close contact with the patient unless the health care worker wears full protective equipment. Vaccinated staff may be asymptomatic, but the virus test is positive, Mills said.

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