NEW YORK (AP) — Hospitals and nursing homes in New York are bracing for the possibility that a statewide COVID-19 vaccine mandate for health care workers could lead to staff shortages. Health care workers have been given until Sept. 27 to get at least their first vaccine shot in one of the nation’s most aggressive plans to protect patients. With just days left to go before the deadline, many still hadn’t gotten the shots. That left the prospect of potentially thousands of health care workers being forced off the job next week. Some hospitals and nursing homes were preparing contingency plans that included cutting back on elective surgeries and trimming medical services.
Photo: FILE – In this Wednesday, May 27, 2020 file photo, Medical personnel adjust their personal protective equipment while working in the emergency department at NYC Health + Hospitals Metropolitan in New York. Hospitals and nursing homes in New York are bracing for the possibility that a statewide COVID-19 vaccine mandate for health care workers could lead to staff shortages when it takes effect Monday, Sept. 27, 2021. Doctors and nurses — and also support staff, like food service workers and cleaners — have been given until Sept. 27 to get at least their first vaccine shot in one of the nation’s most aggressive plans to protect patients. (AP Photo/John Minchillo, File)
