RWJBarnabas Health, one of NJ's largest employers, mandates COVID vaccine for staff

One of New Jersey's largest private employers, the RWJBarnabas Health system, will require supervisors and higher-level staff to be vaccinated for COVID-19 by the end of June — a decision it said Thursday will eventually be extended to all 35,000 members of its staff.

The 11-hospital system is "committed to providing a culture of safety," said Barry Ostrowsky, its president and CEO. "We have an obligation to do all we can to protect our patients and the communities we serve."

About 500 members of the supervisory staff are unvaccinated, an RWJBarnabas spokeswoman said. The policy for those who do not comply "is being finalized over the next several days," she said.

The health system appears to be the first major employer in New Jersey to require at least some of its staff to be vaccinated. No other major New Jersey company has made such a requirement, said Tom Bracken, CEO of the New Jersey Chamber of Commerce.

“Our position is if employers want to do it, they can do it,” he said. “We’re very much in favor of getting the workforce vaccinated. It creates a safer work environment. It helps open the economy up and gets us back to where we want to be.” 

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Gov. Phil Murphy was said to be pleased with the decision.

The governor "applauds RWJBarnabas Health for their commitment to public health and the safety of the patients in their care," said a spokeswoman, Alexandra Altman. "RWJBarnabas is a leading health care system in the state and we’re proud of their vaccination efforts to help end the COVID-19 pandemic in New Jersey." 

The RWJBarnabas decision comes after the University of Pennsylvania Health system, which includes Princeton Health, announced last week that it would mandate vaccination of all its employees for COVID-19. 

Hospital employees were the top priority for vaccination when the Food and Drug Administration authorized the two-dose Moderna and Pfizer vaccines in December. While uptake was strong, it was not universal, especially among younger, female employees, hospital executives have said. But it has continued to rise, as some who were initially hesitant have seen their peers do well after vaccination.  

Dr. Christopher Freer, senior vice president for emergency and hospitalist medicine at RWJBarnabas Health, gives the first COVID-19 vaccination at the mega-site in Edison to Sheriff’s Officer Christopher Vance.

Health care workers are at higher risk for exposure to the virus that causes COVID-19 because of their close interactions with patients. Vaccination "protects them and their patients against COVID-19 and ensures continuation of critical health care services," according to the federal Centers for Disease Control. 

In New Jersey, nearly 4 million people had been fully vaccinated as of Thursday. The pace of vaccination has slowed considerably to less than half its pace in early April, casting doubt on whether Murphy can reach his goal of 4.7 million fully vaccinated adults by the end of June.

Employers have a right to require their workers to be vaccinated for COVID-19, according to guidance issued by the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission in December, as the vaccine rollout began.  

But there are two major exceptions. If the vaccination requirement conflicts with protections for people with disabilities or religious objections, employers have to make a “reasonable accommodation” such as allowing that person to work from home full time.  

“It’s not as clear cut as a lot of people may think,” said Lawrence Spasojevich, an employment law specialist at the New York firm Aidala, Bertuna & Kamins. “If you have an employee with a compromised immune system who wants to wait to get vaccinated until further testing is done, then for the most part the employer doesn’t automatically have the right to impose a mandate on that employee.”  

The three COVID vaccines available in the United States — including Johnson & Johnson's one-shot formulation — have been shown to be safe and effective, with the number of new COVID infections declining across the country.

A study published last week by the CDC found that the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines were 94% effective in preventing sickness among health care workers who were fully vaccinated, or one week past their second dose, and 82% effective among those who were partially vaccinated. The results, from a health system with 500,000 employees in 25 states, were gathered in real-world conditions and mirrored results obtained in previous clinical trials.  

A study of health care workers who received Pfizer or Moderna vaccines for COVID-19, published by the federal Centers for Disease Control on May 14, 2021, showed them to be effective in preventing sickness.

A majority of the RWJBarnabas Health staff already are fully vaccinated, and vaccinations will be available throughout the system to any who need them, the company said.

In addition to its hospitals — Saint Barnabas Medical Center in Livingston; Newark Beth Israel Medical Center; Jersey City Medical Center; Community Medical Center in Toms River; Robert Wood Johnson University Hospitals in New Brunswick, Somerville, Hamilton and Rahway; Clara Maass Medical Center in Belleville; and Monmouth Medical Center in Long Branch and Lakewood — the system has a network of outpatient centers and behavioral health providers, home care and hospice programs, fitness and wellness centers, retail pharmacies, imaging centers and affiliated medical groups.

Where other health systems stand on COVID vaccine

Other health systems said they weren’t planning to mandate staff vaccines at this time.

Hackensack Meridian Health, with three teaching hospitals and nine community hospitals, said through a spokesman that its vaccine rate "is approaching 70% and is 89% for our leaders.

"We continue to carefully evaluate our options," said Benjamin Goldstein, director of public relations. 

Bergen New Bridge Medical Center, the county-owned  facility in Paramus, said that a mandate wasn't necessary, because 82% of its staff has been vaccinated. It does, however, require all new employees, volunteers, students and interns to get the shots. 

St. Joseph's Health, with hospitals in Paterson and Wayne, is not considering a mandate at this time, said Pam Garretson, a spokeswoman. Currently, 72% of its staff are vaccinated. Holy Name Medical Center in Teaneck is not mandating COVID vaccines because they are still administered under "emergency use authorization" from the FDA rather than full approval, a spokeswoman said.

Virtua Health, with hospitals in Camden, Mount Holly, Marlton, Voorhees and Wiilingboro, does not mandate the vaccines, but is "strongly encouraging and promoting the vaccine among our workforce," said a spokesman. Slightly fewer than 70% of its staff are vaccinated. 

And Atlantic Health System, which includes Morristown Medical Center, Chilton Medical Center in Pompton Plains, Overlook Medical Center in Summit, Newton Medical Center and Hackettstown Medical Center, does not mandate vaccines. About 70% of its employees are vaccinated, said Luke Margolis, a spokesman.  

But at least one long-term care company has made it a requirement in an industry where only 60% of workers at assisted living facilities and nursing homes in New Jersey have been fully vaccinated. The low rate has drawn the ire of Gov. Phil Murphy, who said he may impose a mandate if the rate did not increase significantly. 

Atria Senior Living, a chain of assisted living facilities, began requiring its staff nationwide to get vaccinated in January. It has some of the highest vaccination rates among New Jersey long-term care facilities, with its locations in Tinton Falls at 95%, Cranford at 97% and Norwood at 98%, according to state data.   

“We made the decision because we believe our residents deserve to live, and our employees deserve to work, in a vaccinated environment,” said John Moore, the chain's chairman and CEO. 

Lindy Washburn is a senior health care reporter for NorthJersey.com. To keep up-to-date about how changes in the medical world affect the health of you and your family, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.

Email: washburn@northjersey.com 

Twitter: @lindywa