MOH update - Changes to the significant service disruption exemption application process are now liv

Kia ora, As you will be aware, Health and Disability worker are required to have had their booster vaccination by 11.59pm on the 24 February 2022, if eligible, as prescribed in the COVID-19 Public Health Response (Vaccinations) Order 2021 (Vaccinations Order). Thank you for the work you have all undertaken to date to meet this deadline. We are aware that some PCBUs (employers) who are covered by the mandated vaccination dates for health and disability workers, may be considering applying for a temporary significant service disruption (SSD) exemption. If you think that you will have a significant disruption risk to service continuity and will be applying for an exemption, this email is to advise that we have updated the application process. This standardises the process for single and group applications. The updated process is designed to make it easier for employers who have more than two workers who have not meet the mandated booster vaccination timeframe to apply for an exemption. More detail on temporary SSD exemptions can be found at: https://www.health.govt.nz/covid-19novel-coronavirus/covid-19-response-planning/covid-19-mandatory-vaccinations/covid-19exemptions-mandatory-vaccination#service-disruption Exemptions are temporary and are granted to employers to allow their staff to keep working and avoid a significant service disruption, usually for a period of between 1 to 6 weeks. This is to allow for example, the vaccination of the specified affected worker/s or training of a replacement worker/s for the specified role or part of the role. We recommend that employers submit an application as soon as possible to ensure that there is a minimum of disruption to service delivery. There is a processing time of 10 working days for complete applications. All employers who are granted an exemption, must have a robust risk management plan in place to reduce the transmission of COVID-19. This plan must protect the affected worker, all the workers in the workplace, and all people where services are provided. We understand for some employers, a result of the rolling nature of the mandate may not have a significant impact immediately, but they may potentially in the following weeks. As a result, we can accept applications for periods of disruption to several weeks away. Note: that this should be limited to what can be reasonably justified, a period of up to 4 to 6 weeks should be sufficient for the staffing issues to be resolved. If you do not have an accepted temporary SSD exemption and have workers who are non-compliant with Vaccinations Order, they will have to be stood down. For all application you will be required to provide details of each individual worker, how your service would be significantly disrupted, and what risk management plans will be in place should your exemption application be granted. You can request information about your employees’ vaccination status from the Ministry. Once we receive your CIR data sharing application, we will email you with the next steps, including detailed

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