Maryland Mandates Vaccines For Hospital And Nursing Home Staff; Governor Hogan Pushes FDA To Approve Vaccines For Younger Children

ANNAPOLIS, Md. (WJZ) — Maryland volition mandate each infirmary and nursing location unit to get vaccinated by Sept. 1 oregon taxable to regular testing. Governor Larry Hogan made the announcement during a quality league Wednesday astatine the State House focused connected protecting the susceptible during the latest COVID-19 surge.

🚨 Maryland is present mandating vaccines oregon regular investigating for infirmary and nursing location staff. Here is the caller bid from Governor Hogan https://t.co/l5XA8IhvBs @wjz

— Mike Hellgren (@HellgrenWJZ) August 18, 2021

“Not each infirmary has taken enactment and immoderate proceed to person acold excessively galore unvaccinated healthcare workers needlessly exposing their susceptible patients,” Governor Hogan said.

Joe DeMattos, president of the Health Facilities Association of Maryland, said the governor’s mandate volition prevention lives. “We person much, overmuch farther to spell due to the fact that successful a fistful of skilled nursing and rehab centers and successful hospitals, we person unit vaccination rates person to 40 percent,“ DeMattos said.

The Maryland Hospital Association told WJZ Investigator Mike Hellgren that astir hospitals bash necessitate vaccines. “On June 9, 2 and a fractional months earlier the governor’s mandate, Maryland hospitals took this measurement to guarantee the information of their patients, employees and communities. Virtually each hospitals successful Maryland person instituted a mandate oregon stated an volition to necessitate COVID-19 vaccination for each employees,” the radical said.

Hospitalizations are astir 5 times what they were 1 period ago. On July 18, 131 radical were hospitalized successful Maryland. That fig roseate to 630 connected Wednesday. The politician said determination is inactive capable capacity.

Maryland reports 1,012 caller #COVID19 infections today. 8 much radical person died. There are 630 radical successful hospitals close now. The positivity complaint is somewhat beneath 5%. @wjz #coronavirus pic.twitter.com/iAfGoXVqNT

— Mike Hellgren (@HellgrenWJZ) August 18, 2021

The politician said helium volition summation fines and different penalties for nursing homes that neglect to study vaccination data.

BREAKING: The Biden medication volition determination to necessitate that nursing location unit are vaccinated against COVID-19 arsenic a information for those facilities to proceed receiving national Medicare and Medicaid funding, according to an @AP source. https://t.co/VO87OwlyCk

— The Associated Press (@AP) August 18, 2021

Governor Hogan: Our regular vaccination complaint has accrued 20% implicit the past month. @wjz

— Mike Hellgren (@HellgrenWJZ) August 18, 2021

Hogan besides called connected the national authorities to afloat o.k. vaccines and let them to beryllium utilized connected children from ages 5 to 11 arsenic schoolhouse begins. Currently, lone those 12 and older tin beryllium vaccinated.

“We are being told that this support is inactive months away, but that is simply not soon enough,“ Hogan said.

He said the deficiency of afloat FDA vaccine support is “the astir important hurdle to reaching those who are inactive hesitant.”

He besides called connected national regulators to instantly let booster shots for seniors and different susceptible people. “They’ve already said they’re going to bash it, but they are going to hold until September, and our question is why?”

The politician said erstwhile boosters are approved for everyone, the authorities volition not spell backmost to wide vaccination sites.

Right now, Maryland is not mandating vaccines for each authorities employees. He said helium has nary plans to reinstate an indoor disguise requirement.

School committee members successful Anne Arundel County called a recess for their gathering this day aft respective members of the assemblage would not deterioration masks. @wjz pic.twitter.com/ODefzrwSDK

— Mike Hellgren (@HellgrenWJZ) August 18, 2021

“We haven’t been talking astir indoor disguise requirements astatine all. Being 80% vaccinated we deliberation is simply a bully step. If we get the remainder of the radical vaccinated, hopefully, we won’t person to revert backmost to immoderate things from a twelvemonth agone erstwhile we didn’t person vaccines,” Governor Hogan said.

Gov. Hogan says determination is an abundance of vaccines successful Maryland. “We conscionable privation to marque definite we usage them” @wjz

— Mike Hellgren (@HellgrenWJZ) August 18, 2021

He noted 100% of each caller coronavirus infections that person been sequenced successful Maryland are the Delta variant.

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