Eight health workers fired for refusing flu shots

[Luddly Neddite]

The flu is communicable. Health care workers do not have a right to spread disease. If there could be a flu shot that did not intrude on private lives and only protected people at work, surely it would be preferable.

I have never had a flu shot. If I worked in the health care field, obviously the protection for patients comes before my personal decisions.

No flu shot is effective against the flu. Each year the flu is a different strain. All flu shots are obsolete when you get one. You are getting last years flu. People who get the flu shot still get the flu because of this.

I have never ever gotten a flu shot and I'm not going to. The Government tied cooperation with this rule to medicare/medicaid reimbersment. So the hospitals crack down. Our hospital requires any employee who comes with 6 feet of a patient to wear a mask if they elect not to get a flu shot. work in the OR so i always wear a mask anyway.

The government can kiss my ass.

Oh gee.

It doesn't happen very often that I agree with rw's but you are spot on about this.

Its also rare that rw's actually disagree with bigger govt, so good for you.

 

[Luddly Neddite]

this healthcare worker does not get one, never has and never will.

I drink coffee a lot, I also drink a lot of tequila, and I eat meat, vegetables are for rabbits.

I never get sick.

I rarely get a flu shot and don't get sick either, but I also understand that anecdotal experience is not equal to data and a flu shot would greatly reduce my chances of catching the flu.

Interesting that you use that wording because a common saying in medical research is that "the plural of anecdote is data".

Why do "understand" that "a flu shot would greatly reduce my chances of catching the flu"? What do you base that on?

Actually, its far more likely that having gotten those "rare" flu vaccines are what have made you more likely to get the flu.

BTW, I would never ever recommend that others not get a flu vaccine. That's your decision and it should always be your decision.

 

[Luddly Neddite]

As for the hosp - they changed the terms of employment and they ignored the requests for exemption. Those are both grounds for suits.

I see people saying this but am still not sure on what grounds this lawsuit would stand. It isn't like this company is violating employment law by changing the terms of employment to where they must be under 40 years old, white, christian, etc.

Since most employment is at will most employers can change policy and fire employees who refuse to adhere to it whenever they want, this vaccine decision would be no different than a fast food place changing their policy to prohibit wearing of nose rings and firing employees who won't comply. As far as I know there isn't some legal basis that a company's rules/policies for its employees cannot ever be changed without agreement from their employees.

There are probably some exceptions, like if these are union workers they could conceivably have some collective bargaining agreement or maybe if these cats had some contract they signed when accepted their job clearly stating they would never be required to get a flu shot. I have no idea if either applies in this case but I doubt it.

Not even close.

These people refused based on their religion.

In this country, that gets you a win in court.

 

[SteadyMercury]

Not even close.

These people refused based on their religion.

In this country, that gets you a win in court.

I'm not so sure.

"Ethel Hoover, who was a critical care nurse at the Goshen hospital, wrestled with the idea of receiving a flu shot and ultimately refused the vaccination. Hoover’s exemption request was denied, and she was let go from her job roughly a month short of her 22nd anniversary at the hospital. The last time Hoover had a flu shot was about 20 years ago. Hoover said she got sick and decided to never take one again, adding that she was also worried about long-term health effects from the vaccination."



"Sue Schrock started hearing talk about a vaccination mandate last year. Schrock, like Gingerich and Hoover, was a nurse at the hospital in Goshen, and like her two colleagues was let go from her job after her exemption application was rejected, and she refused to receive a vaccination. Schrock believes that there are other steps people can take to stay healthy rather than getting a flu shot, like taking natural vitamins, eating well and exercising. The last time she had a flu shot was about 30 years ago. “I just learned more and more about natural healing,” she said. “We’ve been using natural products for a good 20 years, and that’s the way we believe healing takes place.” Schrock said her decision to decline the vaccination was, in part, “God-led.”



"“We all have different faith walks,” said Gingerich, who describes herself as a nondenominational Christian. “I feel like in my personal faith walk, I have felt instructed not to get a flu vaccination, but it’s also the whole matter of the right to choose what I put in my body and what I feel God wants me to put in versus someone mandating what I put in. It is a very big issue for me.”



One of them doesn't sound related to religion at all, and the other two seem to have taken their own personal interpretation of God's will as opposed to belonging to some religion known to object to vaccinations. Her personal faith walk? What if their shift changed to an earlier hour and her personal faith walk decided she cannot wake up before dawn?

I'll certainly acknowledge religion would be a reason for a lawsuit but I'm not sure things like partly God-led or personal faith walks are very solid grounds.

 

[SteadyMercury]

Why do "understand" that "a flu shot would greatly reduce my chances of catching the flu"? What do you base that on?

History has shown that vaccines can work, and people who are far more learned in medicine and research than I have declared that a flu shot would greatly reduce my changes of catching the flu.

Actually, its far more likely that having gotten those "rare" flu vaccines are what have made you more likely to get the flu.

Curious = what do you base that on?

 

[Jarlaxle]

How many people have you heard of that have gotten the shot, THEN gotten sick?

In my experience, it's a lot more than those that have declined.

Sounds like a lot of us don't do it and never have a problem. I'm kind of surprised that so many people still do it.

The sickest I have ever gotten was right after getting a flu shot. (I ended up in the hospital.) Two flu shots, two miserable outcomes...no more.

 

[theHawk]

How many people have you heard of that have gotten the shot, THEN gotten sick?

In my experience, it's a lot more than those that have declined.

Sounds like a lot of us don't do it and never have a problem. I'm kind of surprised that so many people still do it.

Yup, they push this flu shot shit at work a lot. I always tell people I never get it anymore.

I never understood the reasoning for forcing everyone to get the shot. If you want it, fine....get it. But why should I have to? If everyone else around me got the shot then why should I? How can I catch it from them, or give it to them if they've had the shot?

And like you said, sometimes people get sick from the shot itself and end up with a bad flu anyway.

 

[Pogo]

The flu is communicable. Health care workers do not have a right to spread disease. If there could be a flu shot that did not intrude on private lives and only protected people at work, surely it would be preferable.

I have never had a flu shot. If I worked in the health care field, obviously the protection for patients comes before my personal decisions.

The problem with this premise is it assumes that flu shots prevent flu. I don't happen to believe that and I don't think it's provable.

I've never gotten a flu shot in my life. Running and hiding behind drugs has always seemed kinda senseless to me. The human body is made to resist disease; let it do its job already.

So I agree this is way intrusive, as bad as requiring a drug test, which I've also never consented to, and if we all refused them they would go away. An employer pays for my services; not for ownership of my body. Or my essence (Dr Strangelove ref)