3,000 Health Care Workers In France Have Been Suspended For Not Getting A COVID Shot

https://www.npr.org/sections/coronavirus-live-updates/2021/09/16/ [login to see] /france-covid-19-vaccine-health-care-workers-suspended
France's health minister has said that thousands of health care workers across the country have been suspended without pay for failing to get a required COVID-19 vaccine.

"Some 3,000 suspensions were notified yesterday to employees at health centers and clinics who have not yet been vaccinated," Olivier Véran, the health minister, told France's RTL radio on Thursday, according to a France 24 translation.

French regulations set a Sept. 15 deadline for health care employees to have at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine and show a negative coronavirus test as a condition for working, unless they have an exemption for health reasons or because they've recovered from COVID-19. By Oct. 16, health care workers must show they are fully vaccinated.

Defending the decision to suspend those who did not meet the deadline, Véran said that "the continuity of care, the security of care and the quality of care were assured yesterday in all hospitals and health care facilities" in the country.

Several dozen employees resigned rather than meet the vaccine requirement, he said.