EDITORIAL: It’s long past time: Get vaccinated

Making a hard push for vaccines is one of the few things President Joe Biden has done right.

On Thursday night, Mr. Biden offered a clear-eyed look at the nation’s health landscape.

“This is a pandemic of the unvaccinated,” he said. “And it’s caused by the fact that despite America having an unprecedented and successful vaccination program, despite the fact that for almost five months free vaccines have been available in 80,000 different locations, we still have nearly 80 million Americans who have failed to get the shot.”

Take a moment to understand the reality of this statement. In Nevada, the vast majority of hospitalizations and deaths are among the unvaccinated. The same is true in Arizona, Texas and Florida.

This can’t be dismissed as a statistical trick or the result of incomplete data. It’s true among blue states and red states alike. If that’s not enough, look at other countries around the world that are using quality vaccines, like we have in the U.S. The disparity in health outcomes between the vaccinated and unvaccinated is staggering. The vaccines have saved millions of lives.

They’d save even more if more people rolled up their sleeves.

Unfortunately, the coronavirus is still ravaging the unvaccinated. Over Labor Day weekend, the U.S. had three times as many new coronavirus cases as it did last year. This shouldn’t be happening.

This increase in cases is straining hospital systems around the country. ICUs are overflowing. Doctors and nurses are burnt out and understandably so. It’s emotionally draining to watch people suffer and die needlessly. Overwhelmed hospitals don’t have the capacity to provide care to all who need it. This can result — and has resulted — in patients dying from otherwise treatable diseases.

There’s a broader economic risk here too. The U.S. economy is recovering, but there are many warning signs. These include inflation and a large number of open jobs. The economy always involves many factors, and Mr. Biden’s prolific spending habits haven’t helped. The coronavirus, however, remains a real damper. Potentially millions of people have removed themselves from the labor market. The damage another economy-wide shutdown would do is almost unimaginable.

That’s why Mr. Biden was more than justified in announcing new requirements for employers to mandate vaccines. If anything, he should have done this earlier.

The Department of Labor is drafting the new emergency order, but Mr. Biden said his order will apply to all employers with 100 or more employees. There will be an option for weekly testing of unvaccinated employees. Federal workers and staff at medical facilities will also be subject to a vaccine mandate. In all, Mr. Biden’s orders cover around 100 million people.

Nevada employers shouldn’t wait for Washington. Most business leaders understand what’s at stake here — not just for their bottom line, but their employees’ health. The waffling on vaccines is killing people in droves. Don’t be the leader who has to attend the funeral of an employee when you had the ability to push them to a lifesaving vaccination.

In Nevada, less than half of those in their 20s have received at least one dose of the vaccine. For those in their 30s and 40s, the rate is around 60 percent. Among those 70 and older, the rate is over 86 percent.

It seems likely that many younger adults may not see the urgency in receiving a vaccine. In one way, this is understandable. The reason Gov. Steve Sisolak and other governors prioritized vaccines for older folks is that age dramatically increases risk.

But that was when vaccines were scarce. At this point, the refusal of many younger adults to get the shot isn’t justified. They are still at risk, especially when a highly contagious variant, like delta, is on the rampage. To not protect yourself and others, like children who can’t receive a vaccine, when vaccines are now widely available — is selfish.

An employer vaccine mandate will provide the kick in the pants many of these people need to go and receive their vaccine.

Leaders have to lead. In this case, that means ensuring your employees are vaccinated.