By BRENT MARTIN
St. Joseph Post
Mosaic Life Care has announced all of its employees must be fully vaccinated against the coronavirus by early next year, in compliance with federal rules.
Mosaic CEO, Dr. Mark Laney, says the health care system had intended to follow the guidelines of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, which just issued a mandate that health care workers be full vaccinated by January 4th.
“So, by December 5th, all care givers need to have their first COVID-19 vaccine dose, be it Pfizer, Moderna, or J&J. By January 4th, 2022 all care givers need to be fully vaccinated to continue working at Mosaic,” Laney tells reporters during a news conference in St. Joseph.
Laney acknowledges the move is also motivated by finances. CMS has stated that all hospitals receiving Medicare funding must comply or face stiff fines and penalties.
Mosaic reports that approximately 75% of its 4,500 health care employees have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19, leaving only about 1,000 unvaccinated.
Laney says the move is not just about following the law, but about following Mosaic’s primary value that the needs of the patient come first.
“This is our value statement and it guides every single decision that we make,” according to Laney. “Our patients when they come to Mosaic expect great care and they expect to be safe and receive excellent medical care. They trust us and we want to honor that trust.”
Laney says the federal government does allow for two types of exemptions.
“The medical exemptions are rather narrow. The religious exemptions are more broad,” Laney says. “Those requests are being handled by a committee in our Hurman Resources Department. So, it’s not me or one person making a judgment, based on the request.”
Laney says he doesn’t have an estimate about how many Mosaic employees might file for an exemption.