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ASHEVILLE - Buncombe County government workers will likely not face a vaccine mandate at this time, despite spiking COVID-19 cases and recommendations from the county s top health official.
The nearly 1,600 county employees will instead be required to wear masks and get tested once a month if they are not vaccinated, according to a proposal described by County Attorney Michael Frue to the Board of Commissioners Aug. 3.
Frue said County Manager Avril Pinder and human resources staff have been weighing whether to mandate vaccines but were leaning toward masks and testing. Staff wants to recommend and wants to proceed and look into having the requirements for proof of vaccine or to be tested once a week if the person is not vaccinated, Frue told commissioners.
Buncombe County COVID-19 metrics keep falling; regular updates to end citizen-times.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from citizen-times.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
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COVID-19 vaccines are reaching more arms and the rate of people catching the virus in Buncombe County is falling.
At a community update May 18 before the county Board of Commissioners, Public Health Director Stacie Saunders said new COVID-19 cases and metrics such as test positivity have declined as vaccination rates climb. Overall, our metrics are looking very encouraging, she said. Our hard work as a community is certainly evident as we see those metrics change.
Saunders credited the county s commitment to the three Ws and executive orders and outreach across the county, but she encouraged people to get vaccinated if they haven t yet, and to stay safe.
Dramatic decline in elderly COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations attributed to vaccines msn.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from msn.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.