COLUMBUS, Ohio — Columbus Public Health is now requiring all of its employees to get the COVID-19 vaccine by Nov. 1.

What You Need To Know

  • Columbus Public Health employees are required to get the COVID-19 vaccine by Nov. 1
  • CPH employees must provide proof of COVID-19 vaccination, or provide an exemption due to medical reasons or religious beliefs
  • The move comes after the Food and Drug Administration’s full approval of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine 
  • Many Ohio hospital systems and other employers have required the COVID-19 vaccine for all of their employees

Columbus Public Health officials said the move comes after the Food and Drug Administration’s full approval of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine and after a number of hospital systems and other employers in Ohio have required the COVID-19 vaccine for all of their employees.

CPH employees must provide proof of COVID-19 vaccination, or provide an exemption due to medical reasons or religious beliefs, officials said in a press release.

“As the delta variant continues to surge and we prepare to administer booster vaccines in our community, this vaccine requirement will help protect our workforce and the people we serve from COVID-19 which is spreading like wildfire here and across the country,” said Health Commissioner Dr. Mysheika Roberts in a press release.

Officials said CPH staff are already required to get other vaccines to protect them and the public.

COVID-19 vaccination provides the strongest protection against employees becoming severely ill from COVID-19 and helps prevent the spread of the disease to others, according to CPH officials.

“More than 374 million doses of vaccines have been given safely in the U.S., and full FDA approval of the Pfizer vaccine gives us even more confidence in the safety and effectiveness of the COVID-19 vaccine. The vaccine remains the best tool we have for protecting health and preventing serious illness and hospitalization from this highly contagious virus. As public health workers, we must help lead the way,” Roberts said in the press release.

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