LaLota to Hochul: Rescind Healthcare Worker Vaccine Mandate

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, January 20th, 2023, Rep. Nick LaLota (NY-01) joined the entire New York Republican Congressional delegation, led by Rep. Claudia Tenney (NY-24), in sending a letter to New York Governor Kathy Hochul calling on the Governor to rescind the state’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate for healthcare workers.

“New York State is reaching a crisis point with the lack of qualified healthcare professionals and the state’s vaccine mandates are making it worse. The 34,000 incredibly qualified healthcare workers forced out of their jobs by the vaccine mandate could easily be rehired to fill the open positions,” said LaLota. “The vaccine mandate’s repeal and the rehiring of these healthcare workers would ease the strain on our health system and ensure more New Yorkers have access to quality care. This pandemic policy, done without legislative approval, has made a bad situation worse and Governor Hochul can and should take action to fix the problem.”

To read the full text of the letter, click HERE.

Background:

In the letter, the members highlight how current staffing shortages are negatively impacting New York’s healthcare system and impeding access to quality care. The staffing shortages were exacerbated by the vaccine mandate, which forced nearly 34,000 healthcare professionals out of work.

As of December 2022, there were 9,300 job openings for nurses in New York State. Currently, hospitals from every corner of New York have been impacted by the staffing shortage, forcing many to eliminate services and risk defaulting on existing loans.

The staffing shortage could be lessened by rescinding the mandate in the short term and allow the state to focus on a long-term solution to prevent a future crisis.

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