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UF Health is mandating its employees to be vaccinated

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UF Health employees will be required to be fully vaccinated by Dec. 8, 2021 (Flickr Creative Commons; Lauren Witte/Fresh Take Florida)

UF Health is requiring all employees to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 by the end of 2021. The announcement was sent out to hospital employees in an internal memo sent Wednesday morning.

In response to President Joe Biden’s September executive order mandating vaccines for all federal contractors, employees have until Dec. 8 to receive either both doses of Moderna or Pfizer or the single Johnson & Johnson shot, unless exempt for religious or medical reasons on file. 

This new policy applies to all faculty and staff of UF Health’s hospitals, physician practices and six health colleges at the University of Florida. 

Biden’s vaccine mandate contradicts an executive order passed by Gov. Ron DeSantis on April 2, which exempted Floridians from mandated sharing of vaccination records and other health information.

According to previous reporting, several personal care assistants and healthcare workers throughout Gainesville are frustrated by this loss of privacy and personal choice.

UF and UF Health receive over $1.5 billion in federal contracts or agreements, including Medicare and Medicaid funding, UF Health spokesperson Ken Garcia said.