Advocate Aurora Health fires more than 400 employees who refused COVID-19 vaccines

Advocate Aurora Health has fired 440 employees who refused to get vaccinated against COVID-19. The deadline for employees to be vaccinated was Oct. 15.

According to a statement from an Advocate Aurora Health spokeswoman, nearly half of those who were terminated were not full-time employees. The 440 former employees represented less than 1% of the company’s workforce, and half were from Illinois and half were from Wisconsin. The spokeswoman also stated that 99% of employees were compliant with the vaccine mandate.

Employees who were not in compliance by Oct. 15 were given a three-day suspension to have one last chance to come into compliance. A couple hundred came into compliance in that time frame, the statement read.

“We are protecting the health and safety of our patients, communities and each other,” the statement read.

Advocate Aurora Health operates 26 hospitals and 500 sites of care across Illinois and Wisconsin, including Advocate Sherman Hospital in Elgin, Advocate Good Samaritan Hospital in Downers Grove and Advocate Medical Group in Aurora.