{"id":35593,"date":"2021-09-15T20:29:11","date_gmt":"2021-09-15T20:29:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/uncategorized\/2021\/09\/15\/va-staff-have-a-few-days-left-to-get-covid-vaccines-or-get-fired\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T07:05:29","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T07:05:29","slug":"va-staff-have-a-few-days-left-to-get-covid-vaccines-or-get-fired","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/veterans\/2021\/09\/15\/va-staff-have-a-few-days-left-to-get-covid-vaccines-or-get-fired\/","title":{"rendered":"VA staff have a few days left to get COVID vaccines or get fired"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.militarytimes.com\/veterans\/2021\/08\/12\/va-to-expand-covid-vaccine-mandate-for-employees-contractors-and-even-volunteers\/\" target=\"_blank\">Tens of thousands of Veterans Affairs employees<\/a> have only a few days or weeks left to get vaccinated against <a href=\"https:\/\/www.militarytimes.com\/news\/coronavirus\/\" target=\"_blank\">coronavirus<\/a> or else face discipline for their refusal, including possible firings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">At a press conference on Wednesday, VA Secretary Denis McDonough said officials have seen an increase in vaccinations among department employees since senior staff mandated them for health workers in July and President Joe Biden announced a mandate for all federal workers earlier this month.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThe best way to ensure safety for our veterans is to have our personnel vaccinated,\u201d he said. \u201cAnd so our goal through this process remains to get to 100 percent. If we don\u2019t \u2026 we\u2019ll take the steps that we have to.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\t<aside class=\"smg-interstitial-link wp-block-smg-interstitial-link\">\n\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/news\/pentagon-congress\/2021\/09\/02\/dishonorable-dismissals-for-vaccine-refusal-would-be-blocked-under-congressional-proposal\/\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__inner\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"157\" src=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Airman-Korea.jpg.jpg?w=300\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__image wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" \/>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__content\">\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"smg-interstitial-link__kicker\">Related<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"smg-interstitial-link__title\">Dishonorable discharges for vaccine refusal would be blocked under congressional proposal<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"smg-interstitial-link__excerpt\">The plan is included in the House Armed Services Committee&#039;s version of the annual defense authorization bill.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t<\/aside>\n\t\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">According to information released by the department, about 280,000 Veterans Health Administration employees have confirmed to supervisors that they are fully vaccinated or received the first of the two-shot regimen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That\u2019s just under 74 percent of the agency, slightly more than the 70 percent vaccination rate announced by VA officials in July.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">About 35,000 VHA workers have said they still have not taken any steps towards getting the vaccine,<b> <\/b>and about 65,000 more still haven\u2019t filed needed paperwork to establish their health status. VA officials cautioned that many in that last group may already be vaccinated, but have not yet taken the formal steps to record their status with the department.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For many of the unvaccinated and the unverified employees, the deadline for completing the coronavirus vaccine protocol is the end of next week. Others in the group will have until early October because of the timing of mandate announcements by VA officials during the summer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">McDonough said some of the unvaccinated individuals may be eligible for waivers due to health or religious exemptions, and staff will spend the next few weeks sorting through those specific issues.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Employees not granted waivers who refuse after that review will be subject to \u201cprogressive discipline,\u201d which includes counseling and other pre-dismissal interventions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThe last thing we want to do is have to fire trained personnel,\u201d he said. \u201cSo there will be a very clear process implemented by a supervisor and local level, the goal of which is to get people vaccinated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cAt the end of that, if they\u2019ve still chosen to not get vaccinated, they will be separated from federal service.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">VA leaders did not have an estimate how many individuals could be fired as a result of refusals.<\/p>\n\n\n\t<aside class=\"smg-interstitial-link wp-block-smg-interstitial-link\">\n\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/news\/your-military\/2021\/09\/15\/veterans-treatment-court-program-working-but-needs-va-improvement-to-increase-access-watchdog\/\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__inner\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"157\" src=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP_16137704402194-RESIZED.jpg.jpg?w=300\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__image wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" \/>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__content\">\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"smg-interstitial-link__kicker\">Related<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"smg-interstitial-link__title\">Veterans treatment court program working, but needs VA improvement to increase access: watchdog<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"smg-interstitial-link__excerpt\">The GAO issues recommendations to improve Veterans Justice Outreach program within VA.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t<\/aside>\n\t\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Employees in other VA agencies, such as the Veterans Benefits Administration and National Cemetery Administration, have similar vaccination rates but have until Nov. 22 to complete their shots, since their mandate stems from the White House order just announced earlier this month.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">VA workers are eligible for up to four hours of paid leave to get the vaccine and two days of sick leave if they experience side effects from the shots.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">More than 25,000 VA employees have contracted COVID-19 since the start of the pandemic in America 18 months ago, including more than 5,000 since the start of July. At least 182 have died from complications related to the virus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Across the VA health care system, more than 327,000 patients and staff have contracted the virus since March 2020, with more than 14,250 deaths.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Tens of thousands of staffers either have not started the vaccine regiment yet or have not filed paperwork showing their vaccine 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