NFID Protects Employees by Requiring COVID-19 Vaccination

Bethesda, MD (September 14, 2021)—Based on mounting evidence of the safety and effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccines, the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases (NFID) has adopted a new policy requiring all employees to be vaccinated against COVID-19.

“Getting vaccinated is the most important thing each of us can do to help stop the spread of COVID-19,” said NFID Executive Director and CEO Marla Dalton, CAE. “As an employer, NFID has a duty to provide and maintain a workplace that is free of preventable hazards like COVID-19. This new policy will help protect the health and well-being of our employees, their families, NFID visitors, and the community at-large.”

The policy is based on guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and is intended to comply with all federal, state, and local laws. As a small employer, NFID is not subject to proposed new federal rules that impact businesses with 100 or more employees.

New data released by CDC on September 10, 2021, found that fully vaccinated people had five times lower risk of infection and more than 10 times lower risk of hospitalization and death due to COVID-19.

For decades, NFID has been a national leader in promoting vaccination through professional education and public awareness campaigns. “The NFID policy is consistent with our longstanding commitment to evidence-based disease prevention,” said Dalton. Each year, the NFID Leading By Example initiative calls on leaders in healthcare, business, education, and politics to make a public commitment to influenza (flu) prevention and share their vaccination photos on social media. Since 2020, the NFID Keep Up The Rates campaign has enlisted more than 135 national organizations to encourage individuals of all ages to receive recommended vaccines that may have been delayed during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The full NFID policy is available on the NFID website at www.nfid.org/covid-19-vaccination-policy.

About the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases

Founded in 1973, the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases (NFID) is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to educating the public and healthcare professionals about the burden, causes, prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of infectious diseases across the lifespan. Visit www.nfid.org for more information. Learn more about COVID-19 at www.nfid.org/coronavirus.

Contact: Diana Olson, dolson@nfid.org, 301-656-0003 x140