Bassett Healthcare has Sept. 27,
deadline for employees to be vaccinated
By KEVIN LIMITI • Special to www.AllOTSEGO.com
COOPERSTOWN — In response to the state government mandating vaccinations for all healthcare workers, Bassett Healthcare has given its employees a deadline of Monday, Sept. 27, in order to have the first dose of the vaccine.
The mandate does not offer room for religious exemption but it does allow medical exemptions.
An internal email, penned by Dr. Tommy Ibrahim, CEO of Bassett Healthcare, said if employees are not vaccinated by Sept. 27, “you will no longer meet the regulatory requirements to be employed by Bassett Healthcare Network.”
“It pains me to say this, because we value each and every one of you and everything you do for our organization,” Ibrahim said. “However, this is what the law requires, and we must follow that. More detailed policies will be coming next week.”
According to Gabrielle Argo, interim network manager at Bassett, 25% of Bassett employees are unvaccinated, according to recent statistics. She said she didn’t know how many employees they would lose by the deadline.
“We’re confident that COVID vaccines are life saving and the way we will get out of the pandemic,” Argo said during a phone interview Friday, Sept. 3. She emphasized the importance of the health of staff and patients.
“Everything we do is to ensure the safety of not only the patients but also the staff. Healthcare facilities across the state are also implementing similar plans in order to comply with state law,” Argo said.
A mandate is in no way a law. You should really check that out. There’s a huge difference. This mandate also violates both the United States Constitution and the New York State constitution.
Big government!! My body, MY choice! It is not proven to work (52% unvac and 48% vac) and long term side effects are not known so to mandate it is wrong! To fire someone for this in when your short staffed is not smart to say the least!
How can they be fired for not getting the vaccine? if they get fired can they get unemployment?
Dr. Tommy Ibrahim, CEO of Bassett Healthcare has no concept of what the staff at A.O Fox Hospital and Nursing Home have gone through during this past year. This leader, and I use this term loosely, should stand up to the Tyranny of this cumulative Health Department-BUSINESS and New York State Mandate. It is absolutely 100% UNCONSTITIONAL, ILEGAL and DISCRIMINATORY for Bassett to enforce this Mandate of injecting an obviously unsafe substances into their employees. All businesses in this state should be banning together and standing up agents this Tyranny. It appears that Dr. Ibrahim attempted absolutely ZERO PUSH BACK! His statement “It pains me to say this, because we value each and every one of you and everything you do for our organization,” Is a blatant lie! Fallow the MONEY. Oneonta, you will have no healthcare when he is done with FOX. Oneonta, your elderly in that Nursing Home will be displaced and put wherever they can find space for them. Once again disrupting there golden years. As if the torcher the political powers of this state has put them through during this “pandemic” has not been enough.