The revelation that nearly half of all staff members with the Santa Clara County Sheriff's Office have declined to be vaccinated is stoking fears of further COVID-19 outbreaks within county jails.
Nearly 800 staff members have declined to be vaccinated. That's a little under half the total workforce at the county sheriff's office, putting the agency's vaccination rate far behind many other local public safety departments.
Those figures surfaced at a county meeting this week, raising immediate alarm bells.
"Thousands of people remain in our custody and it's incumbent on us to protect them and keep them safe," said County Supervisor Susan Ellenberg.
Ellenberg expressed concern that unvaccinated jail staff could spread the virus to inmates.
"To the extent that staff is not contributing to their safety by refusing to be vaccinated, we need to take additional steps to protect the people that don't have a choice," she said.
Sheriff's officials reported that some staff members have refused the vaccine due to medical issues or scheduling conflicts.
Ellenberg called for more education and outreach for employees.
To date, more than 500 county inmates have been infected since the coronavirus pandemic began.
