Providence Alaska Medical Center has adjusted its Covid-19 vaccine policy, requiring its caregivers who previously declined to get a Covid-19 vaccination to resubmit their “exemption request” or proof of vaccination through the company’s online portal.
The hospital has tightened its exemption rules to reduce the number of accepted exemptions. Social, political, and other beliefs will not be honored for exemptions, although religious beliefs may be granted, and medial exemptions may be granted to those with CDC-recognized contraindications.
Those who are resubmitting their exemption requests will find it more difficult to evade the vaccination and still remain employed at Providence.
According to the human resource department at Providence, the hospital requires all caregivers to be fully vaccinated by Oct. 18 or have an approved medical or religious exemption. Those who do not comply may be forced out of their jobs, or “removal from the schedule,” as a human resource memo describes it.
This comes at a time when nurses and other caregivers are in such short supply that the hospital is nearly in a crisis mode, according to observers who say the staff is harried and overworked.
