The COVID-19 vaccination rate among workers in Arizona nursing homes remains lower than that of most other states.
According to the most recent data from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, about 70% of employees in Arizona's long-term care facilities are fully vaccinated. The national average is more than 75%.
A federal judge this week temporarily blocked an order from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, which would have required most nursing home workers nationwide to be fully vaccinated by next month.
Evidence suggests workplace vaccine requirements significantly boost immunization rates.
The Glencroft Center for Modern Aging in Glendale gave all of its employees a Nov. 1 deadline to get vaccinated for COVID-19. When the rule was announced, only about half of the center's 460 employees were immunized. But Glencroft chief health officer Scott McClintock said the compliance rate is now about 97%.
“A lot of employees who had previously indicated they would not get a vaccination finally decided, ‘OK, we’ll do it,'" McClintock said. "The worst-case scenario did not appear."
