Reports: Houston Astros, Washington Nationals mandating vaccines non-playing staff
David J. Phillip/AP
FILE - (AP Photo/David J. Phillip, File)
The Houston Astros and the Washington Nationals are reportedly mandating COVID-19 vaccines for non-playing staff.
According to ESPN, the Astros and Nationals are the first Major League Baseball organizations to make the vaccine mandatory.
The Houston Chronicle says Astros employees received an email in early July that said unvaccinated staff would not be allowed into Astros offices starting on July 30.
The Nationals released a statement to ESPN about the decision to mandate vaccines.
"Like many organizations, the Washington Nationals decided to make COVID-19 vaccines mandatory for all full-time staff. Employees were notified of this policy on August 12 and had until August 26th to either provide proof of full vaccination, proof of first shot or apply for an exemption," the statement reads. "As a company, we have a responsibility to do everything we can to keep one another safe and felt that mandating vaccines was the absolute right thing to do for our employees and our community."
The MLB reports two-thirds of its 30 teams have reached an 85% vaccination rate for players and other staff.