Politico | Coronavirus: Joe Biden expands US vaccine requirements in bid to rein in Covid-19
- Dubbed ‘Path out of the Pandemic’, the six-part plan includes an order that all executive branch federal workers get vaccinated
- The new mandates are expected to cover about 100 million workers – two-thirds of all workers in the US
This story is published in a content partnership with POLITICO. It was originally reported by Adam Cancryn and David Lim on politico.com on September 9, 2021.
The move represents a dramatic expansion of the administration’s bid to boost vaccination rates among frontline health care workers, and comes as the administration readies a redoubling of efforts to rein in the virus.
The requirement is part of a broader six-part blueprint for combating the pandemic that Biden unveiled. Dubbed “Path out of the Pandemic”, it outlines new initiatives aimed at boosting vaccinations and access to testing, insulating the economy, keeping schools open, expanding mask requirements and improving care for Covid-19 patients.
“This is not about freedom and personal choice. It’s about protecting yourself and those around you,” Biden said. He added, “The bottom line, we‘re going to protect vaccinated workers from unvaccinated coworkers.”
Biden last month said he would impose staff vaccination requirements on all federally funded nursing homes, a directive expected to cover roughly 15,000 facilities employing 1.3 million people. Now, he is extending the order to a far wider group of providers, including major hospitals across the nation that receive Medicare or Medicaid funding.
