The Biden regime’s vaccine mandate for the private sector continues to take its toll on the American workforce, even though a number of federal courts have blocked it.
And nowhere is this impact being felt more than in the healthcare industry.
Whereas at one point during the pandemic we hailed our healthcare workforce as heroes willing to stay on the front lines treating those sickened by the virus, now they are being castigated and cast aside if they refuse to put a largely experimental drug into their bodies. And that is leading many providers to simply leave the field altogether or allow themselves to be fired, both of which is leading to staff shortages that are increasingly being filled by the military.
As The Epoch Times reports:
At least four states in recent days have called in members of the National Guard to deal with health care staffing issues amid COVID-19 vaccine mandates for health care workers.
Late last week, Indiana became the latest state to deploy the National Guard to hospitals around the state. The Indiana Department of Health confirmed to local media that Guard members were sent to 13 facilities after officials with Indiana University Health, the state’s largest hospital system, made the request.
Indiana University officials said that it is dealing with “all-time highs” of both COVID-19 and non-COVID-19 patients. Earlier this year, about 125 Indiana University health care workers were fired for not complying with the system’s vaccine mandate, although the hospital said at the time that most fired workers were part-time.
“As COVID cases continue to increase and hospitalization of COVID and non-COVID patients reach all-time highs, the demand and strain on IU Health’s team members, nurses and providers has never been greater,” Indiana University Health said this weekend, adding that it “will leverage all available resources and enlist members of Indiana’s National Guard, in conjunction with the Indiana Department of Health, to assist in areas of critical need.”
Officials noted that six-person Guard teams with clinical and nonclinical personnel are set to be deployed to Indiana University hospitals in two-week intervals.
Last week, New Hampshire officials confirmed that about 70 National Guard members were set to be deployed over the next few weeks to give non-clinical support at state-run hospitals.
“Primarily, we’re going to start with non-clinical care in the hospitals, and the primary reason why is—we’re a part-time force,” Maj. Gen. David Mikolaities said in a statement to local media. “And for us to utilize our doctors and nurses and physician assistants, we don’t want to take away from the health care system that is already strained.”
Those deployments will begin on either Monday or Tuesday, he said.
“If unfortunately during the winter months the hospitalization rates continue to increase, we’ll be more than happy to provide additional resources,” Mikolaities added.
Maine Democrat Gov. Janet Mills said on last week that she has called up around 75 of her National Guard members, who will also provide nonclinical support in the coming months to hospitals and clinics. In New York, Gov. Kathy Hochul, also a Democrat, noted this month that she is deploying some Guard troops as well for a similar support mission.
“I do not take this action lightly, but we must take steps to alleviate the strain on our health care system and ensure care for all those who need it,” Mills said in a statement.
The Epoch Times adds:
The Guard will deploy some 120 Army medics and Air Force medical technicians to 12 long-term facilities and nursing homes “to ease staffing shortages,” according to a news release from the National Guard. Gov. Kathy Hochul, a Democrat, ordered the mission at the start of December and cited what she said is a seasonal rise in COVID-19 cases.
