Winona Health to Require Staff COVID-19 Vaccination

WINONA, Minn. (KWNO)-Winona Health has joined a growing list of health care providers who are requiring staff to be vaccinated against COVID-19.  

“We want to protect our staff. We want to protect patients. We want to protect the community so we are going to require that as of September 7th,” Winona Health President/CEO Rachelle Schultz said on KWNO’s In the Know Monday morning. 

Schultz said workers who don’t get the vaccine will be required to get tested for the virus on a weekly basis. She said weekly testing allows Winona Health to monitor the virus’s spread.  

Shultz says the vaccine requirement was also put in place to prevent staffing issues caused by quarantines for staff members infected with COVID-19.  

“We really can’t afford to have any of our staff out on quarantine for extended lengths of time,” said Schultz. “That just makes our staffing situation really tougher.”   

Vaccinated people do not need to quarantine if they’re a close contact with someone infected with COVID-19 unless they’re experiencing symptoms, according to the CDC.

Staffing numbers limited capacity in Winona and at other hospitals across the state and country when COVID surged late last year.  

“It’s a really tough place right now because it puts a lot of burden on the other people who are at work because we don’t have a lot of excess staff. So, you’ve kind of got this situation you’re trying to manage every day to keep people healthy so they can help the other people who are not feeling good,” said Schultz during an interview in November of 2020 when asked about COVID-19 infections and close contacts impacting staffing levels. 

Schultz said Winona Health put the requirement out last week. She pointed out Winona Health mandates all staff receive the flu vaccination every year.