California Governor Gavin Newson announced on Tuesday that healthcare workers will now be mandated to get their booster shot against COVID-19, KRON4 reported.
The state is “taking immediate actions to protect Californians and ensure our hospitals are prepared” as the new COVID-19 omicron variant continues to infect people, the governor said.
Newson will travel to Alameda County on Wednesday to check the testing clinic there as well as to launch new measures to protect public health, his office said.
The state is way ahead of any other state in terms of vaccination coverage as it has already administered over 64 million vaccine doses.
Apart from the booster vaccine announcement, California also relayed the first vaccine protocols in the country. These include the full vaccination requirement among healthcare workers and people who attend in-person education as well as the requirement of presenting vaccination documents or weekly testing among school and state employees.
Meanwhile, Newson will release an official statement regarding the booster requirement on Wednesday.