Should employers pay for flu or H1N1 09 Vaccines for health care workers?

Yes if there are costs, the employer should pay for the protection of the employee from getting sick when working with contagious patients, as well as for the protection of patients who are vulnerable during illnesses who need this protection while they are in the care of health care workers and in health care facilities.

The H1N1/09 vaccine is provided by the US government (and many other world governments) at no expense to the patient; there would also be no costs for an employer of health care workers unless they do not employ people capable of administering the vaccine at the work location (unlikely). If that were the case, then they may need to send their employees to a public location for the vaccination rather than provide it at the work place, or they may have to pay for someone to come to the workplace to administer the vaccine.

For seasonal flu vaccines, healthcare providers in the US are encouraged by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) to see that all their employees are protected. In addition, in accredited health care facilities, the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO) requires that, to be accredited, the organizations in the healthcare industry must initiate annual influenza programs, offer vaccinations at the work site, and promote healthcare worker participation for the protection of the patients in their care. Therefore, employers really have no choice other than to pay for these for their workers as a cost of doing business. And if workers refuse these vaccinations without medical reasons for doing so, they can be reassigned to non-patient care areas, or may be terminated for not adhering to terms of the employment, this may vary from state to state.

Some states also have enacted laws requiring that health care workers in their states must get vaccinated for H1N1/09 to continue employment as a health care worker.