A second Pennsylvania health care system admitted to administering the COVID-19 vaccine to family members of employees, but said it stopped the program after talks with the state Department of Health.
The University of Pennsylvania Health System said its Chester County Hospital ran a “lottery system” for family members of employees who otherwise met state eligibility requirements.
“Based on guidance from the Pennsylvania Department of Health on this issue this week, Chester County Hospital has discontinued the practice,” Patrick Norton, Penn Medicine’s vice president of public affairs, said in a written statement in response. investigations by the Associated Press. .
Additional details about the lottery program at Chester County Hospital, including how it worked and how many family members of the employees were vaccinated in it, were not immediately available on Friday.
“We continue our commitment to protect as many individuals as possible, while respecting all applicable eligibility guidelines,” Norton said.
Earlier this week, another large health network, Geisinger, admitted to allowing employees’ family members to skip the COVID-19 vaccine line, owning three weekend clinics where Geisinger employees were allowed to bring up to two members. of the family, as long as they were eligible for the phased launch of the vaccines by the state.
The state health department said Geisinger, which has facilities in central and northeastern Pennsylvania, should not have put the vaccine aside for employees’ relatives. The agency has threatened to delay Geisinger’s allocation of the first doses of the vaccine. Geisinger insisted he followed state guidelines for vaccine eligibility.
Approximately 3,600 relatives of Geisinger employees were vaccinated under the program. No additional vaccination clinics are scheduled for employed family members.