The former director of the Rhode Island Department of Health is providing some insight on the proposed new regulations for health care workers.
If the regulations are accepted, health care workers who have not been vaccinated against COVID-19 will be able to return to work.
"The job of the Rhode Island Department of Health is to protect the health and safety of all Rhode Islanders," Dr. Michael Fine, former Rhode Island health director, told WJAR 10 News. "My fervent wish and belief is that every health care worker should be rushing to get immunized."
According to the proposed regulations, unvaccinated health care workers would be required to wear an N95 mask when COVID-19’s transmission rate in Rhode Island is equal to or more than 50 cases per 100,000 people per week, according to WJAR 10 News.
The suggested new regulations would also allow fully vaccinated health care workers to work without a mask under the right conditions.
"It's too soon for anybody to be walking around without a mask inside, when they're exposed to people outside of their household," Fine told WJAR 10 News.
Gov. Dan McKee (D-RI) and Dr. James McDonald, Rhode Island's interim health director, believe that "the proposed regulation would continue to mitigate the risk for the health care workers and help keep patients and residents safe."
