HSHS hospitals now require proof of vaccinations from patients instead of COVID-19 test
All Illinois HSHS hospitals, including St. Elizabeth’s in O’Fallon and St. Joseph’s in Highland and Breese, will no longer require COVID-19 testing prior to surgeries and other procedures. Instead, they will require proof of vaccination.
In a statement, HSHS announced Thursday that all of its hospitals no longer will require COVID-19 testing for scheduled procedures for fully vaccinated patients. Those may include surgeries, interventional radiology, certain GI or respiratory procedures.
Routine tests, such as x-rays or bloodwork, do not require vaccinations.
According to the hospital, if patients do not have proof of vaccinations before their procedure, they will either need to be tested or the procedure will be canceled.
“As we start to return to normal in our daily lives, we are getting closer to resuming normal operations at our hospitals as well,” said Dr. Gurpreet Mander, chief physician executive at HSHS Illinois. “These updates to our pre-procedure testing policies represent a step in the right direction.”
All patients and visitors regardless of vaccination status are required to wear masks at HSHS hospitals.
This story was originally published July 1, 2021 at 1:10 PM.