Do health-care workers have a duty to be vaccinated for seasonal and swine flu? New York’s state health department seems to think so, issuing a rule this summer that all hospital, home health and hospice health-careworkers must get flu shots, reports the New York Times . The rule has spurred controversy, both from hospital employees’ unions, who contest the mandatory rule, as well as among public health officials. Some parents have also expressed uncertainty about whether to immunize their children from the swine flu. Typically, less than half of health-care workers get voluntary flu shorts, but that’s a higher percentage than the third in the general population

who get it. Some say that voluntary vaccination won’t give workers — and patients — the protection they need. Julie Gerberding, the former director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said that it’s important for the workers and their patients, who are often vulnerable to viruses and infections because of age or weakened immune systems. “We tried to market the idea, to push people, to educate,” she told the NYT. “But looking back, broadly speaking, we failed. It’s time to look at a more aggressive approach.” Iimage: Getty Images

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Flu Shots a Must for New York Health Care Workers