MASON, Mich. — Ingham County will require all of its employees to get vaccinated or be tested for COVID-19 on a weekly basis.
The Board of Commissioners passed the resolution Tuesday evening.
Board Chair Bryan Crenshaw siad it was"proposed by our controller's office after discussions with our county services chair and our health officer."
It does not mandate vaccinations for county employees, which was a cause of concern among many employees.
"It started out as a mandatory vaccination and then after some concern was brought to us, we moved to a testing-only policy," Crenshaw said.
The resolution passed 11 to 2.
"Well you know with the spread of COVID-19 amongst vaccinated and unvaccinated individuals we do know that those who are unvaccinated...it affects them more than an individual who is vaccinated...So if we can try to stop the spread of COVID-19 by getting a vaccination it will help our employees and help our employees' families...but I do understand the health concern that others have of health information being disclosed," Crenshaw said.
Crenshaw said he isn't sure when the resolution will go into effect, but said that, at this point, county employees will be asked to disclose their vaccination status voluntarily.
"As an employer we do need to protect our employees and the public that we serve," Crenshaw said.
A second resolution passed will require all employees of contractors working for the county to be vaccinated at the same rate as the county vaccination rate. This will apply to any contracts moving forward, including those that are renewed.
Want to see more local news? Visit the FOX47News Website.
Stay in touch with us anytime, anywhere.
Sign up for newsletters emailed to your inbox.
Select from these options: Neighborhood News, Breaking News, Severe Weather, School Closings, Daily Headlines and Daily Forecasts.
