Sonoma County Supervisors require employee vaccinations or testing

The Sonoma County Board of Supervisors today approved a policy requiring all county employees to either show proof of full COVID-19 vaccination or submit to weekly testing. 

The policy, which will take effect Sept. 7, will apply to all 4,400 county employees. It comes two weeks after Sonoma County Health Officer Dr. Sundari Mase issued a health order requiring all fire, law enforcement and emergency medical service personnel to show proof of vaccination or undergo weekly testing. Dr. Mase also recommended that all employers in Sonoma County adopt a similar policy for their workers.

“By adopting this measure, the county, as one of the largest employers in the North Bay, is setting an example that we hope other employers will follow,” said Lynda Hopkins, Chair of the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors. “With COVID cases rising, especially among the unvaccinated, we want to create a safe work environment for all of our employees.”

The policy comes as COVID cases have increased to their highest levels since February, particularly in unvaccinated populations. As of today, Sonoma County’s new cases per day per 100,000 residents was 41 among unvaccinated individuals and 8.8 among vaccinated residents for an overall case rate of 19.6 Meanwhile, Sonoma County has fully vaccinated 72 percent of residents 12 and older while another 8 percent have been partially vaccinated.

“The safest workplace is a fully vaccinated workplace,” Dr. Mase said. “Requiring employees to get vaccinated or submit to testing will increase our vaccination rate and give employees peace of mind when around their coworkers.”