Less than 40% of Nursing Home Staff Offered COVID Vaccine Took the Shot, CDC Says
Less than 40% of workers at nursing homes offered the coronavirus vaccine got the shot, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
A new CDC study examining the first month of the vaccination period from Dec. 18, 2020, to Jan. 17, 2021, found that only 37.5% of staff members at over 11,000 skilled nursing facilities received a dose of the vaccine. By comparison, 77.8% of residents received a vaccine.
Numerous news accounts in the last month have focused on the reluctance of staff at nursing homes to be vaccinated. A Kaiser Family Foundation survey found that 29% of staff were definitely not or probably not going to get the vaccine. Many facilities have taken to offering bonuses and paid time off to persuade staff members to get vaccinated.