Ulster County aims to ease flu vaccine access for public employees

Ulster County could spend roughly $9,000 this flu season to make sure its employees are vaccinated.

The county Legislature’s Ways and Means Committee on Thursday passed a resolution authorizing the county to spend $8,997 so its employees can get the inoculations at their workplace.

In the past, the county has contracted with third-party health care providers to provide vaccines for county employees. This year, however, the county is providing the opportunity for employees to get vaccinated on county property.

The idea is the brainchild of Kingston Democrat Peter Loughran, who said he hoped that by making it convenient, more county employees will get vaccinated.

He said the plan already had proved to be a success, with more employees than anticipated signing up to get the vaccinations on the job.

Legislature Chairman Ken Ronk called the plan a “great idea.”

“Anything that makes it easier to get a vaccine is a good idea. I’m glad that Legislator Loughran brought this forward,” said Ronk, RWallkill.

According to the resolution, the Legislature “has a duty to make good health practices as convenient as possible for its workforce,” and providing on-site flu vaccinations will help decrease employee absenteeism.

If approved by the full Legislature on Tuesday, county employees will be able to get flu shots at the County Office Building in Uptown Kingston and other locations selected by the County Executive’s Office.