Resignations over former New York Democrat Gov. Andrew Cuomo's vaccine mandate have left an upstate New York hospital short and stopping the delivery of new of babies at its maternity ward.
Lewis County General Hospital in Lowville, N.Y., saw six resignations in its maternity ward over the mandated COVID-19 vaccination order and will be temporarily shut it down until it can recruit new workers, The Epoch Times reported.
Lewis County Health System Chief Executive Officer Gerald Cayer at a news conference on Sept. 10 announced the six resignations from the maternity ward while seven more remain undecided.
"If we can pause the service and now focus on recruiting nurses who are vaccinated, we will be able to reengage in delivering babies here in Lewis County," Cayer said.
Before resigning as governor, Cuomo mandated all healthcare workers in the state to get their first COVID-109 shot by Sept. 27. About 27% of Cayer's 464-person workforce, or 165 workers, are unvaccinated.
"Our hope is as we get closer [to the deadline], the numbers will increase of individuals who are vaccinated, fewer individuals will leave and maybe, with a little luck, some of those who have resigned will reconsider," Cayer said. "We are not alone. There are thousands of positions that are open north of the Thruway (a highway system spanning Upstate New York) and now we have a challenge to work through, you know, with the vaccination mandate."
Cayer said 30 workers were prompted to get vaccinated due to the state's mandate.
Also, President Joe Biden issued federal orders that facilities that receive Medicaid or Medicare funding have to have its workers get vaccinated with no exceptions, according to the Times.
Biden also mandated companies with 100 workers or more to mandate vaccinations or weekly COVID-19 testing or face potential fines of up to $14,000 per incident.
Eric Mack ✉
Eric Mack has been a writer and editor at Newsmax since 2016. He is a 1998 Syracuse University journalism graduate and a New York Press Association award-winning writer.
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