DATE: September 9, 2020—FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
FROM: Allison Gergley, Director of Marketing and Public Relations
Heart of the Rockies Regional Medical Center
1000 Rush Drive, Salida, CO 81201 Email: Allison.gergley@hrrmc.net
Tel.: 719-530-2217 Fax: 719-530-2232
HRRMC follows CDPHE’s approved request for COVID-19 vaccine mandate for healthcare workers
SALIDA, Colo. – On Thursday, Sept. 2, Heart of the Rockies Regional Medical Center announced to staff plans to comply with the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE)’s mandatory COVID-19 vaccination program for hospital staff. The new policy will require staff to be fully vaccinated by Oct. 31 of this year.
On Aug. 30, the State Board of Health approved CDPHE’s proposed rule to require licensed healthcare facilities to mandate their personnel to receive the COVID-19 vaccine. This includes employees, direct contractors and support staff. As CDPHE is a regulating body of HRRMC, this requirement has been extended to HRRMC employees, direct contractors, outlying clinics and support staff.
“Throughout the pandemic, our staff have shown resilience and their commitment to our patients and community,” said HRRMC CEO Bob Morasko. We now join hospitals and health systems around the state and country in taking this important step towards ending the pandemic.”
“Over the past week, we have been meeting with and offering our employees education and information about the COVID-19 vaccine, and had direct communication touch points and forums to address their concerns and questions,” said April Asbury, HRRMC Vice President of Patient Services. “We will continue to listen to staff voice their thoughts and support them through the implementation process.”
Since the internal announcement on Sept. 2, HRRMC has been communicating a clear policy and timeline on vaccination status and plans. HRRMC has offered several employee vaccine clinics following the FDA’s approval of the Pfizer vaccine, now known as the “Comirnaty” vaccine.
For more information about the hospital’s response to COVID-19, please visit hrrmc.com/covid-19-updates.
