(WSIL)---SIH officials say rumors are spreading fast on social media about staffing levels since Illinois Governor JB Pritzker insisted all health care workers get vaccinated against COVID, or submit to weekly testing.
"Our values are not transitory; they are cast in stone. We are committed to providing a safe place for our staff to work and for our patients to receive care," said SIH President and CEO Rex Budde in a statement.
Officials do confirm 160 workers have left their jobs citing the requirements, and 97.4% of SIH employees have had at least one dose of the vaccine.
That number does NOT include workers at Harrisburg Medical Center, which just came under the SIH umbrella earlier this year.
We should learn more tomorrow about statistics from HMC.
For perspective, SIH employs 3,600 people overall throughout their facilities.
Community members report a small protest at Herrin Hospital yesterday over the mandate, but SIH says there were no protests today.
We've reached out to other hospitals in the region, and we've learned Heartland Hospital hasn't had any employees leave their jobs citing the vaccine mandate.
