CVS Health mandates vaccines for some employees

CVS Health on Monday announced it will require COVID-19 vaccinations for all corporate employees and certain clinical workers who interact with patients.

The two groups of employees must be fully vaccinated by Oct. 31, while pharmacists will have until Nov. 30 to get the shot, the company said.

“From the start of the pandemic, our decision-making process has been driven by health, safety and science,” CVS Health President and CEO Karen Lynch said in a statement. “While the vast majority of our employees have chosen to be vaccinated, this decision is in direct response to the dramatic rise in cases among the unvaccinated.”

The health care giant made the announcement after the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) gave full approval to the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine. The regulator’s decision is expected to trigger a wave of new vaccine requirements from businesses and state and local governments.

President Biden urged employers to mandate vaccines during a Monday address following the FDA announcement.

“If you’re a business leader, a nonprofit leader, a state or local leader who has been waiting for full FDA approval to require vaccinations, I call on you now to do that,” Biden said. 

A few dozen companies, including McDonald’s, Walmart and Walgreens, have mandated vaccines for corporate employees. But only a small number of companies have extended vaccine requirements to their front-line workers as CVS did on Monday.