Cuomo: State employees must get vaccinated or take weekly COVID-19 tests

Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced Wednesday that all patient-facing health care workers at state hospitals must get vaccinated against COVID-19.

News 12 Staff

Jul 28, 2021, 9:18 PM

Updated 1,162 days ago

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Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced Wednesday that all patient-facing health care workers at state hospitals must get vaccinated against COVID-19.
He also announced that all state employees must get vaccinated or face weekly COVID-19 tests.
Cuomo said he wants health care workers at state-run hospitals to be vaccinated for COVID-19 by Labor Day. The governor says there will be no testing option for health care workers.
It comes as COVID-19 cases continue to surge across the country, including in New York.
The mandate for state employees who must get vaccinated or face tests affects about 130,000 state employees.
The president of CSEA Local 1000 union, which is one of New York's largest workers unions released a statement, saying they support the governor's vaccine or test policy.
The PBA of New York state, which represents 1,200 workers in law enforcement says it is looking into legal options to oppose this.
News 12 asked a Mount Kisco-based employment attorney about the governor's announcement.
"I don't think it's per se illegal if you would, to discuss that or unlawful to have somebody be compelled to be vaccinated for the safety of the other employees in the workspace," said employment lawyer Marc Sheridan.
Cuomo says he's in talks with all the state's unions to come up with a plan to quickly implement this new rule.
The the Labor Department says your employer can mandate the vaccine if they give proper accommodations to people with medical or religious exemptions.