A prominent group of California nurses has condemned the state’s plans to roll back masking and COVID-19 vaccine requirements in healthcare settings from April, arguing the decision puts healthcare workers at risk. .
The accusations were made Friday after the California Department of Public Health announced From April 3, masks will no longer be required in indoor high-risk and medical settings, and healthcare workers will no longer be required to be vaccinated against COVID-19.
The department noted that federal regulations still ensure that most healthcare workers are vaccinated against COVID-19.
But Bonnie Castillo, executive director of the California Nurses Association, said: release That decision is a “failure of public health leadership.”
“Abandoning these standards is a counterproductive and unscientific approach to curbing the spread and evolution of Covid-19,” wrote Castillo. It jeopardizes the health and safety of health care workers, undermines their ability to obtain personal protective equipment from employers, and ultimately exacerbates the health staff crisis that political leaders have pledged to address.”
The group noted that the rollback occurred when the state passed 100,000 with COVID-19.
The release says the association will inform hospitals and clinics employing 100,000 members of their “continued responsibility” to protect nurses and other health care workers.
“This is an attack on frontline healthcare workers who face the risk of Covid-19 infection, reinfection and long-term Covid,” said association president Cathy Kennedy.
“It is a reality that political leaders put nurses, patients, and members of the community at risk of developing chronic conditions such as heart disease, stroke risk, diabetes, pulmonary embolism, cognitive impairment, and long-term immune dysfunction. It doesn’t matter,” she continued.
Their statement also highlighted a recent survey of nurses who found that nearly 60% of respondents needed time off from work to recover from post-COVID or prolonged COVID symptoms over the course of the pandemic.
State public health departments also announced that starting March 13, as long as people with COVID-19 feel well, their symptoms improve, and they have no fever, the recommended duration will be reduced to five days.
The agency will also rescind an order that required hospitals statewide to accept patients transferred from facilities with limited intensive care capacity as needed beginning April 3.
Officials said the state was able to take these steps because it is investing in public health infrastructure. The department said it continues to monitor the science of the pandemic and has received recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for guidance.
