Businesses Work To Comply With Vaccine Mandate | Connecticut News | Wfsb.com – WFSB

(WFSB) – Businesses are working to comply with one of the president’s vaccine mandates.

A federal judge has lifted a stay on President Biden’s mandate for companies with more than 100 employees, meaning the rule can go into effect next month.

Chris Dipentima is the President and CEO of Connecticut Business & Industry Association.

He said, “it’s a big deal. It was on again, off again, on again now, and so employers have more of a compressed time to comply with this mandate.”

Businesses always knew this was a possibility, so many were making plans to be ready.

Now they have until January 10 to put a policy in place and create a log of vaccinated employees.

Companies that want to offer a testing option having until the middle of February for that.

Something else companies need to decide if they are offering a testing option or are requiring vaccines.

Unlike the mandate on federal contractors, that is a choice that exists for companies with 100 or more

Yale-New Haven Health is requiring proof of vaccine for anyone who wants to visit one of their hospitals.

Their chief clinical officer, Dr. Thomas Balcezak, said this is about protecting their staff and their patients, especially when you consider many of them face higher risk of serious cases.

Now unvaccinated people can show proof of a negative PCR test within the last 72 hours before visiting.

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Balcezak said, “the last thing our communities need is large numbers of our employees, our medical staff, our clinical care givers to be infected.”

This policy applies to Yale-New Haven’s in-patient facilities, including its five hospitals along the shoreline in Connecticut and Rhode Island.

It does not apply to patients.

Danbury Hospital, owned by Nuvance Health, has a similar policy.

The Connecticut Hospital Association says that as far it it’s aware, no other health networks are requiring vaccines for visitors.

Yale New Haven says its staff does have leeway to offer exemptions in certain situations.

“If you’re someone who is a labor partner for someone who is about to give birth, or you’re someone who is taking care of someone with a disability, and a couple other circumstances, or end of life,” said Balcezak.

Yale New Haven said it knew it would get criticism, but many support the decision.

Sharon Neubieser said, “if that’s their rule, that’s their rule and you’ve just got to abide by it, if you don’t want to get vaccinated, I guess see them when they get home.”

“I mean, you’re in the hospital, you want to protect the people in the hospitals, and the nurses and everybody else that works there,” said Frank Sadlowski.