The hospital announced the change in policy in an internal email to employees.
Houston Methodist, which made national headlines after becoming the first hospital in the United States to mandate the COVID-19 vaccines, will no longer require its employees to receive the controversial shots after a new law passed by the Texas legislature outlawed the practice of denying vaccine choice to workers in the private sector.
The hospital announced the change in policy in an internal email to employees, reviewed by The Epoch Times, that employees who choose not to receive the COVID-19 vaccine will no longer be prohibited from working at the institution, effective Dec. 1.
“The Texas Legislature passed a law in the special session that prohibits private employers from requiring employees and contractors to get a COVID-19 vaccination as a condition of employment,” the statement read. “We will continue to encourage everyone to receive the COVID-19 vaccine, but it will no longer be mandated at Houston Methodist. This means that getting the vaccine, or being approved for an exemption, will no longer be a condition of employment.”
The statement added that the hospital “has always put the safety of our patients and employees first.”
Dr. Mary Talley Bowden, a practitioner in Texas and founder of Coalition of Health Freedom, told The Epoch Times that the hospital’s decision to play the role of trailblazer in becoming the first to mandate the COVID-19 vaccine was not only poorly conceived, but unleashed a series of negative ripple effects in terms of medical freedom that would quickly spread to other institutions throughout the nation.
“Houston Methodist and their CEO Dr. Marc Boom coerced nearly 30,000 employees to get an experimental modified mRNA shot with no long-term safety data,” said Dr. Bowden. “Their mandate policy was the first in the country and paved the way for the government and other businesses to impose a highly unethical employment policy on millions of Americans.”
On June 8, 2021, Houston Methodist became the nation’s first hospital system to require its private health care providers to get the shot. In a letter informing hospital staff of the policy, Houston Methodist Chief Physician Executive Dr. Rob Phillips justified the decision by claiming that forcing employees to take the vaccine was their moral obligation, writing,“It is our duty as health care professionals to do no harm and protect the safety of all of us — our colleagues, our patients and our society.”
The hospital hadn’t returned a call for comment from The Epoch Times by the time of publication.
