OHIO — Mount Carmel said it's changing its COVID-19 vaccine policy, mandating all employees to get it or face losing their jobs. 

"Our patients and their families deserve to know when they walk through our doors, we have done everything in our power to reduce their risk of exposure to COVID-19. The same goes for our employees and physicians," Mount Carmel wrote in a statement. 

They must become fully vaccinated by Sept. 21.

"Employees who do not get vaccinated or obtain an approved religious or medical exemption by their deadline will no longer be eligible for employment. We do hope it won't come to this — we believe this is the best next step to keep our employees, patients, and community safe," Mount Carmel said. 

Mount Carmel has nearly 12,000 employees, and 25% of them are not vaccinated, according to the health system. 

Its parent company, Trinity Health, said it will require its more than 117,000 employees in 22 states to get the vaccine. 

Other central Ohio hospitals and systems like the Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, OhioHealth and Columbus Public Health are not requiring the vaccine at this time but encourage employees to get vaccinated as soon as possible. 

Mount Carmel is one of the few in the nation to mandate the vaccine for its employees.

A little more than a dozen hospitals in states where less than half of the population has been vaccinated made the move in recent months. They include Connecticut Children's Hospital, St. Louis-based SSM Health and Detroit-based Henry Ford Health System, which are all giving employees until the beginning or end of September to comply.