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LA County Expands Vaccine Mandate To Include Outside Contractors

LOS ANGELES (CBSLA) — Los Angeles County contractors who work with the public or county employees will have to be vaccinated against COVID-19 under a new mandate approved Tuesday.

The vaccine mandate takes effect immediately and applies to contractors who interact with the public or with county employees. Contractors have until Jan. 1 to comply, and both employees and contractors can request a medical or religious exemption. If an exemption is granted, workers would be required to undergo weekly testing.

Supervisor Janice Hahn had recommended expanding a mandate covering the county's more than 101,000 employees to include outside contractors.

"Given the importance of vaccinations in our fight against COVID-19 and the expansive network of contractors that the county employs, the board should adopt an urgency ordinance that would require contractor employees who work alongside county workers, interact with the public and work on county property to be vaccinated," the motion read in part.

As of Dec. 7, more than 81% of county employees were fully vaccinated and another 1% were partially vaccinated.

While the county is emphasizing education and outreach to increase vaccination compliance, some employees have already started to receive notices and could be terminated by the end of the year, according to Liz Odendahl, Supervisor Jan Hahn's spokeswoman.

(© Copyright 2021 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. City News Service contributed to this report.)

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