Health Care Workers Protest Novant, Atrium Health Vaccine Mandate

CHARLOTTE, NC — Hundreds of protesters marched through Charlotte Sunday, denouncing new health care worker vaccine mandates in Charlotte metro hospital systems.

Five hospital systems in North Carolina, including two in the Charlotte metro, are now requiring all their employees get vaccinated against COVID-19. The hospital systems include Atrium Health, Novant Health, Cone Health, Duke Health and Wake Forest Baptist, which join facilities in the UNC Health hospital system that will also require all their workers to get vaccinated.

In the Charlotte metro, Novant Health employees have until Sept. 15 to be fully vaccinated, while Atrium Health will require that status by Oct. 31.

It's an employment requirement that doesn't sit well with all health care workers. “I don’t think that, I don’t believe it’s right to put that kind of choice in front of somebody,” nurse Kelly Cook told WSOC.

SEE ALSO: These NC Hospital Systems Now Requiring Employee Vaccinations

"With the new and more contagious variants now causing hospitalizations to rise across our region, we are requiring teammates to be vaccinated against the virus — to avoid catching or spreading it to others in our hospitals or other clinical environments," Atrium Health said Sunday in a statement.

"Most doctors, nurses and other medical professionals are drawn to their profession because they want to help and care for other people — specifically to help them get and stay well and live longer, healthier lives," Atrium Health said. "The new COVID-19 vaccine requirement is designed to do exactly that, since the science shows that the COVID-19 vaccines are safe, effective and continue to save countless lives."

The vaccine mandate at North Carolina hospital systems comes as vaccination rates continue to lag throughout the state as the number of new cases and hospitalizations continue to jump. As of July 30, about 57 percent of adults in the state were fully vaccinated, according to North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services.

SEE ALSO:

• NC To Require Vaccination Proof From State Workers: Gov. Cooper
• Universal Masking When CMS Students Return To Class Next Month
  
• Mecklenburg's COVID-19 Transmission Rate Is High, CDC Says