Montgomery County debates COVID-19 testing option as employee deadline approaches

The deadline for Montgomery County employees to either be vaccinated or tested for COVID-19 comes this weekend.

SILVER SPING, Md. - The deadline for Montgomery County employees to either be vaccinated or tested for COVID-19 comes this weekend.

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Last month, County Executive Marc Elrich says county employees must be vaccinated or undergo weekly testing by September 18.

Some county leaders want to do away with the testing option, but Elrich disagrees.

MONTGOMERY COUNTY EMPLOYEES MUST GET VACCINE OR BE TESTED BY SEPTEMBER 18

"I do believe everybody should get vaccinated," Elrich said Wednesday. "I don't think there is any question that everybody should get vaccinated and if I were running something that wasn't a critical enterprise then I would take my chances on being able to find somebody who is willing to get vaccinated to do that job is somebody was unwilling."

"But I think there are some things in the county that we have to think about," Elrich continued. "We could put this in place. If the result is that a large number of people in the fire department and the police department and in our corrections decide they are not going to get vaccinated -- and the county loses these people -- the consequences to public safety could be severe. And we have to weigh that."

FOX 5's Bob Barnard says only about 60 percent of county employees have disclosed their COVID-19 vaccine status. Of those who answered, 95 percent say they are fully vaccinated.