All Hoboken Employees Must Get COVID Vaccine Or Tests: Mayor

HOBOKEN, NJ — Hoboken has become among the first cities in the country to make the potentially controversial move of telling city employees they must get the COVID-19 vaccine. On Friday, the city's mayor said that employees must be fully vaccinated by Aug. 9, and those who are not must take weekly tests and wear a face covering indoors and when interacting with the public.

Mayor Ravi Bhalla signed the executive order on Friday.

A city spokesman said the order applies to all employees of the city, including police and firefighters. It doesn't apply to teachers, who work for the Board of Education and not the city.

Bhalla encouraged Hoboken businesses to adopt similar policies.

Hoboken — a mile-square city of 53,000 residents across the river from Manhattan — was one of the first cities in the country to begin closing local facilities in March 2020 in advance of the pandemic. Fifty-two residents of the city have passed away from COVID.

Delta Variant And Local Statistics

"The vaccination or testing requirement aims to promote safety and prevent the spread of COVID-19 in municipal buildings and within the Hoboken community, as many public employees regularly come into contact with residents and community stakeholders," said a release.

Bhalla cited concerns with the rapidly spreading Delta variant of the virus, which has increased hospitalizations among both vaccinated and unvaccinated populations.

Doctors say the vaccine will, however, keep it from becoming more serious in those patients.

The city recently noted that 33 vaccinated residents had tested positive for the virus so far.

More than 609,000 Americans have now died from COVID (see which states have the highest recent death rates here).

Bhalla said, “I ask all Hoboken businesses and companies to consider implementing similar measures, to protect their own employees and members of the public. The vaccines have been proven to be highly effective.”

Earlier this week, the United States Department of Justice declared that federal law does not prohibit private businesses or public agencies from imposing COVID-19 vaccination requirements for employees.

“The vaccines have been proven effective and are saving lives,” said Dr. John Rimmer, Chief Medical Officer of Hoboken University Medical Center. “With the spread of the Delta variant – we are all faced with two options – get the vaccine, or inevitably get the virus. Without question, the vaccine is currently the safer option.”

The city is continuing to offer weekly testing and vaccine clinics to anyone who lives, works, or goes to school in Hoboken.

How To Get A Vaccine Or Tests Locally

The Hoboken Health Department will provide free vaccinations to all municipal employees on Tuesday, Aug. 4, through Medicine Man Pharmacy at 605 Jackson St. from 3 p.m. to 4 p.m.

For the most up-to-date testing schedule offered through the City of Hoboken, please visit https://www.hobokennj.gov/testing.

For the most up-to-date vaccine clinic schedule offered through the City of Hoboken, visit https://www.hobokennj.gov/vaccine.

READ MORE: COVID Hospitalizations Spike In NJ As Delta Variant Spreads

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