WVU Medicine and Mon Health System are requiring employees and volunteers to be vaccinated against the flu as a condition of employment.
The mandatory flu inoculation policies include an exemption on religious or medical grounds. The organizations said in a joint statement the requests will be considered on a case-by-case basis and are not a guarantee of exemption.
Many national health advisory organizations such as the American Hospital Association support mandatory influenza immunization for health workers. Johns Hopkins University, Mayo Clinic and Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia already have mandatory flu vaccination policies.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has estimated that flu vaccination coverage among health care workers is about 75 percent.