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State senator Tom Duane to reintroduce mandatory flu vaccinations for healthcare workers

Samuel Goldsmith DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER

As flu season rolls in, lawmakers are breathing new life into a controversial measure that would force health care workers to get vaccinated.

The state Health Department ordered all health care workers to get the flu vaccine in August 2009, when worries about the swine flu pandemic were high. The measure had the support of Gov. Paterson but was withdrawn amid vaccine shortage and strong opposition from unions.

Officials expect a more average flu season this year, but Sen. Tom Duane, head of the Senate health committee, says he's taking the legislation back to Albany anyway.

"People don't like being told what to do, but frankly, if you work in a hospital setting, flu vaccination should be mandatory," Duane (D-Manhattan) told the Daily News. "There will be people mad about it, but I do believe it's necessary."

Flu season generally starts when the weather grows cool in October or November and lasts until spring.

The requirement was designed to protect patients and workers from the spread of flu. Duane said his bill would require inoculation for everyone in medical facilities.

The measure is supported by a number of medical groups around the country.

Starkweather/Bloomberg

Sen. Tom Duane, head of the Senate health committee, is pushing mandatory flu vaccinations for health care workers, despite strong opposition by those who would be affected by the law.

But Assemblyman Rory Lancman, chairman of the Assembly subcommittee on workplace safety, said the measure has "almost universal opposition from the health care professionals who are covered by the order."

"The order would make New York the only state in the country that required mandatory vaccinations," said Lancman (D-Queens). "Not that every health care professional shouldn't be vaccinated, but it shouldn't be mandatory."

"There is virulent and visceral reaction to being ordered to inject vaccine into your body by the government," he said. "A mandatory vaccination program is simply not workable."

Even the measure's strongest foe, the New York State Nurses Association, recommends flu vaccination to all its members. But it stops short of supporting the requirement.

"By itself, this extreme measure will not prevent the spread of the influenza virus in hospitals," said Renee Gecsedi, a director at the union.

Officials with the New York City Health Department would not comment on the proposed legislation, but urged everyone to get vaccinated.

sgoldsmith@nydailynews.com

Sept. 19, 2010

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