On Monday, November 29, 2021, Dayton Children's Employee Health department sent an email stating that beginning December 6, 2021, employees who received vaccine exemptions were required to receive a PCR test every seven days or be subject to disciplinary actions.  It is our belief that requiring only unvaccinated employees to receive PCR testing is discriminatory in nature.

The email sent by Employee Health and Wellness also openly admits that, “...no vaccine is 100% effective and as such, there are breakthrough cases”.  Additionally, this information is confirmed by the CDC regarding the SARS-CoV-2 vaccine[1].  Since it is recognized by Dayton Children’s that fully vaccinated individuals can be infected by SARS-CoV-2 and can also transmit the virus, it seems highly irresponsible and reckless that only unvaccinated employees are required to be tested.  

The effectiveness of the SARS-CoV-2 vaccine is also highly in question.  A study, chronicled in Science, showed that the effectiveness of all three US vaccines showed dramatic decreases in effectiveness after six months[2].  Additionally, as new strains of SARS-CoV-2 are discovered (such as Omicron), many health experts are unsure as to how much protection SARS-CoV-2 vaccines will offer[3].  If the health and well-being of Dayton Children’s patients, families, and employees is of genuine concern, and the vaccinated and unvaccinated can both spread the virus, it is evident that singling out a specific group of employees to be tested is blatant discrimination and in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

In lieu of this discriminatory requirement, we will continue to take appropriate steps in keeping ourselves and those around us healthy.  These precautions have been highly effective since we have faithfully worked through the pandemic, with many of us missing minimal days, or none at all, due to sickness since the pandemic began.  We are extremely proud to be Dayton Children’s employees and look forward to many more years as part of the Dayton Children’s family.

Sincerely,

Dayton Children's Hospital Employees

[1] https://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2021/s0730-mmwr-covid-19.html
[2] https://www.webmd.com/vaccines/covid-19-vaccine/news/20211105/covid-vaccine-protection-drops-study
[3] https://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2021/11/30/1059859253/why-omicron-variant-spreads-so-quickly-infectious-mutations