In an effort to bring Los Angeles in line with Pasadena and other cities that have taken steps toward implementing a vaccine mandate, Los Angeles City Councilman Mark Ridley-Thomas plans to introduce a motion on Wednesday to develop a policy requiring all city employees to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and to report their vaccination status to the appropriate city department.
San Francisco and New York City have announced similar plans — and on Monday California officials announced that all state employees and all workers at hospitals and healthcare facilities will be required to show proof of COVID-19 vaccination or be tested at least once a week.
In Pasadena, Mayor Victor Gordo last week called for mayors and county officials to develop policies to vaccinate government employees across the region.
City Manager Steve Mermell is developing a policy that would require all city workers to be inoculated against COVID-19.
“Based on self-attestations voluntarily provided by city employees, approximately 55% stated they are fully vaccinated for COVID- 19,” Mermell wrote in his weekly newsletter.
“The city of Los Angeles must lead by example,” Ridley-Thomas said in a statement released late Monday night.
“Plain and simple,” he said, “vaccinations are the only way out of this pandemic. They are the most effective way to prevent transmission and limit COVID-19 hospitalizations and deaths.
“If we want our economy to fully recover, if we want our children to be able to go to school without masks on, and if we want the most vulnerable members of our community to not end up in the hospital, we must all do our part and this motion is a step in the right direction.”
With the Delta variant of the coronavirus continuing to drive up infection rates and hospitalizations in Los Angeles County, Ridley-Thomas added, “I believe that now is the time to scale up our COVID-19 precautions.”
On Monday, L.A. County reported four more deaths and 1,966 new COVID-19 infections, while hospitalizations increased to 825 — more than double the number from just two weeks ago.
“It’s time to get it done,” Ridley-Thomas said, regarding a vaccine mandate.
He is likely to receive support from fellow council members, several of whom have already publicly supported the city moving in a vaccine-mandate direction.
“I support having all city workers vaccinated,” Council President Nury told the Los Angeles Times.
Meanwhile, after an announcement by the state Monday, all state employees and all workers at hospitals and healthcare facilities across California will be required to show proof of COVID-19 vaccination — while those who are unable or refuse to do so will have to be tested at least once a week.
The vaccine-verification program for state employees is expected to begin as early as next week.
The system for healthcare workers will be implemented over the coming weeks, with compliance expected by Aug. 23. It will apply to all healthcare settings across the state — public and private.
The policy falls short of a vaccine “mandate,” offering employees the option of undergoing regular COVID testing instead of providing proof of vaccination. Those workers will be required to undergo testing at least once a week, possibly even twice a week.
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One thought on “As Pasadena Officials Develop Similar Plans, L.A. Councilman to Introduce Motion On Vaccine Mandate for City Employees”
This is so wrong on several levels. As a Pasadena resident I am strongly against this. No one knows what harms this may have to the body in 3 to 5 years, let alone those who suffer immediately from this non- approved by the FDA experimental “vaccine”. Check out VAERS. Plus not to mention the exploitation of aborted fetus cells that were used in it’s making. THAT goes against God. This is so much like a preparation for the Mark of the Beast where a forced marking on a person’s body will be required to either buy or sell or conduct any kind of societal business, but will end up causing a person to lose their eternal soul. Those against this must protest.