Spartanburg Regional halts COVID vaccine mandate following U.S. District Court ruling
Spartanburg Regional Healthcare System is placing its COVID vaccine mandate policy on hold for its employees until this preliminary ruling is finalized.
The decisions follow U.S. District Judge Matthew Schelp's blocking of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services vaccine mandate for healthcare workers, ruling that it was issued improperly, followed by U.S. District Judge Terry Doughty's sweeping ruling on Tuesday that blocked vaccine mandates from being administered nationwide.
"According to S.C. Attorney General Alan Wilson, while the rule is blocked, the government cannot force healthcare workers to get vaccinated." Spartanburg Regional Media Relations team said in a statement. "Therefore, SRHS is placing the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) COVID-19 federal vaccine mandate policy on hold until this preliminary ruling is finalized."
Related: Federal judge blocks vaccine mandate for health care workers
The hospital system notified its more than 9,500 employees and providers on Friday, Nov. 12, that it will comply with the emergency temporary standard that was announced Nov. 4 by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid. That was two days after hospital officials told the Herald-Journal that they were "working to comply" with the standard.
More: Spartanburg Regional issues COVID vaccine requirement manual to all hospital staff
As of Sept. 14, 2021, about 59% of Spartanburg Regional Healthcare System’s providers and associates have completed vaccination.
Statewide, about half of South Carolina's more than 5,000,000 residents are fully vaccinated, about 60% have gotten at least one shot and 502,000 have gotten third doses or boosters, according to Dr. Brannon Traxler, director of the state Department of Health and Environmental Control.
More: Prisma, Bon Secours, AnMed have differing COVID vaccine requirements after blocked mandate
In a press conference Wednesday afternoon, state Attorney General Alan Wilson said the case of the CMS mandate will next be heard in the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals in early 2022.
"We will continue to monitor this litigation as it proceeds through the federal court system," Spartanburg Regional Media Relations team said.
Check back for more updates on this developing story.
Ashley Dill is a native of Spartanburg and has been on staff for the Herald-Journal for 14 years. She covers community news and can be reached at ashley.dill@shj.com or on Twitter at @ashleydill_shj.
This article originally appeared on Herald-Journal: Spartanburg Regional halts COVID vaccine mandate for employees
