Houston Hospital That Fired Workers Decries Abbott’s Mandate Ban

(Bloomberg) -- A Texas hospital system that fired employees for refusing to take Covid-19 vaccines earlier this year said it’s “deeply disappointed” with Governor Greg Abbott’s executive order forbidding companies from requiring shots.

“We are grateful we mandated the vaccine early so the order will not have an immediate impact on us,” Marc Boom, the chief executive officer of Houston Methodist, wrote in an email. “But we are concerned for other Texas hospitals that may not be able to continue their mandates now with this executive order.”

Houston Methodist, which operates several hospitals in the area and has more than 25,000 employees, was one of the first hospital systems in the country to mandate the vaccine for workers in April. More than 150 eventually resigned or were terminated for refusing to comply. The hospital system is still reviewing Abbott’s order and its possible implications, but because its own rule went into effect months ago, 100% of its employees are compliant with the vaccine policy, according to Boom. 

“Not only are our patients safe as a result, but we are able to remain healthy at work and be there for our community when it needs us the most,” Boom said. 

Abbott announced an order Monday to ban vaccine mandates for workers in the state. The order argued that the Biden administration is “bullying” private entities to implement vaccine mandates “in another instance of federal overreach,” setting up a showdown between his state and the federal government. 

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