Department of Homeland Security (DHS) employees are nearing 100% compliance with a federal order regarding the COVID-19 vaccine.
A DHS update issued Dec. 6 said that approximately 96% of DHS employees comply with President Biden’s Executive Order requiring coronavirus vaccination for federal employees. As of Nov. 30, approximately 88% of DHS employees are fully vaccinated and 89% have received at least one dose of the vaccine. Approximately 7% have had “reasonable accommodation requests.”
DHS Deputy Secretary John Tien noted this was “no small feat” with a department as large and dispersed as DHS.
“The health and safety of our workforce – and the American people that we serve – is of the utmost importance,” Tien said in the release. “Importantly, we have achieved this level of compliance without any interruption to the critical missions and services we provide the American people: from border and aviation security, to maritime search and rescue, to cybersecurity and the protection of critical infrastructure, just to name a few. I am so grateful to our dedicated workforce, who have stepped up and done their part to get us there.”
The Executive Order, issued Sept. 9, requires vaccination for all federal employees. As of Nov. 22, federal employees were required to be fully vaccinated unless they had an extenuating circumstance, or were pending exception or extension, the order released by the White House said. Biden said in the order that it is essential federal employees take all steps to protect themselves and avoid the spread of the virus to co-workers, as well as the public.
“In the days and weeks ahead, DHS is continuing to provide our employees with resources and counseling about vaccination,” Tien said in the release. “DHS employees can continue to provide their vaccination status and documentation, as well as request exemptions. We will adjudicate each exemption request on a case-by-case basis.”
The best way to prevent the spread of coronavirus is to be vaccinated, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. All vaccines available have been authorized by the FDA for emergency use.
