Dr. Raul Pino, director of the Florida Department of Health in Orange County, was placed on administrative leave after emailing employees about their low COVID-19 vaccination rate, telling them it was "irresponsible not to be vaccinated."
WFTV reports that Pino had an analyst gather vaccination data on his department's 568 employees, and found that less than half had received two doses of a COVID-19 vaccine and just 13 percent had their booster. "I have a hard time understanding how we can be in public health and not practice it!" Pino wrote in his Jan. 4 email. "The reasons can be many, but so many of us? I am sorry, but at this point in the absence of reasonable and real reasons, it is irresponsible not to be vaccinated." He added that for the department to not even hit a 50 percent vaccination rate is "pathetic."
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