DC to require government employees to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19, Bowser says

As the highly transmissible delta variant continues to drive COVID-19 numbers up across the country, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser announced that the city will require D.C. government employees to be fully vaccinated.

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"All employees, contractors, interns and grantees of the Government of the District of Columbia must be fully vaccinated against COVID-19," Bowser said at a press conference Tuesday. All covered individuals have until Sunday, September 19 to be fully vaccinated. Full vaccination will be a requirement for all new hires appointed to jobs posted on or after August 14.

Employee and employment candidates may be exempted from the COVID-19 vaccination requirement for medical or religious reasons, Bowser said.

Any unvaccinated employee, even those who qualify for medical or religious exemptions, will be required to conduct weekly COVID-19 testing. Bowser said failure to comply will lead to ‘adverse employment actions.’

As of Tuesday, 59% of D.C. employees have reported their status and 54% report being fully vaccinated.

Mask mandates are once again in effect indoors in the nation’s capital for everyone over the age of two – regardless of COVID-19 vaccination status. The mandate went back into effect on July 31.

D.C. estimates that nearly 65% of residents are partially or fully vaccinated against COVID-19.

Over the weekend the COVID-19 outbreak in the United States crossed 100,000 new confirmed daily infections.