Compulsory COVID-19 vaccinations for care home staff – guidance notes
Regulations revoking vaccination as a condition of deployment came into force on 15 March 2022. People working or volunteering in care homes are no longer required to have received a COVID-19 vaccine to enter the premises.
These Compulsory COVID-19 vaccinations for care home staff – guidance notes explain about the legal requirement for care home workers to have both COVID-19 vaccinations in order to continue to work in a care home
. With effect from 11 November 2021, the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014 were amended to require care home employers in England to use only staff who have been vaccinated in care homes, unless they have a medical exemption.
This requirement applies to care homes in England that:
• are registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC); and
• provide accommodation for residents who require nursing or personal care.
The requirement to be vaccinated applies to all workers who enter a care home, including full- and part-time employees, agency workers and volunteers.
There is no medical exemption from the vaccination on the grounds that an individual is trying to conceive, is pregnant or is breastfeeding. Similarly, there is no exemption on religious grounds.
The guidance notes cover the following:
• The staff that are required to have the COVID-19 vaccination;
• Medical exemptions;
• How employees can provide evidence of the COVID-19 vaccinations;
• What happens if employees have not had both vaccinations by 11 November 2021; and
• Next steps for employers.
As of 1 April 2022, the requirement to be vaccinated will also be introduced for health and social care workers in England whom an employer "may employ or otherwise engage" for the purposes of the provision of CQC-regulated activities. Guidance notes on the extension of the requirement to be vaccinated can be found here: https://www.england.nhs.uk/coronavirus/wp-content/uploads/sites/52/2022/01/C1545-update-vcod-for-healthcare-workers-phase-2-implementation.pdf.
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