Good afternoon,

We are writing with an important update on President Biden’s call to duty for Federal Executive Branch employees to lead by example and be fully vaccinated (meaning at least two weeks past the final dose) by no later than November 22, 2021.  As we have said before, this requirement applies to all USDA employees and is essential to limiting the spread of COVID-19, including the new and highly contagious Delta variant, which is 60 percent more contagious than the Alpha variant we dealt with last year. The U.S. has surpassed 700,000 COVID-19 deaths and over 43 million people have been infected, making this the deadliest pandemic in our country’s history. Children now account for more than one in five new cases, and the highly contagious Delta variant has sent more children into hospitals and intensive care units in the past few weeks than at any other time in the pandemic.

For those of you who still need to be vaccinated, below are interim deadlines that will ensure you are two weeks from your last dose and thus fully vaccinated by the November 22nd deadline. Visit www.vaccines.gov to find a COVID-19 vaccine near you and learn more about the benefits of vaccinations.

• October 11: First dose deadline (Moderna COVID-19 vaccine)
• October 18: First dose deadline (Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine)
• November 8: Second dose deadline (Moderna and Pfizer vaccine)
• November 8: First (only) dose deadline (Johnson and Johnson COVID-19 vaccine)
• November 22: Federal employees must be fully vaccinated

Employees who cannot receive the vaccine for reasonable or religious reasons should request an accommodation by October 18, 2021. Here is a link to the Reasonable Accommodation Coordinators. Here is a link to the Religious Accommodation Coordinators, which includes the required religious accommodation request form to complete.

If you have not completed the proof of vaccination survey, please do so by filling out the proof of vaccination survey by November 9, 2021.

Thank you to the tens of thousands of USDA employees who have already submitted the required proof of vaccination information.  Employees who have not submitted proof that they have been fully vaccinated by November 9, 2021, and who do not have a pending request for a medical or religious accommodation, will be subject to administrative action, culminating in removal. If an employee initiates a first or second dose of the vaccine during the enforcement process, the enforcement will be paused (held in abeyance) as long as the employee becomes fully compliant with the mandate. All managers will be receiving further information on their role in ensuring employees are compliant with the vaccine mandate. Managers do not have access to employee’s electronic proof of vaccination documentation.

Certain employees who will not be in pay status on November 22nd or are on extended leave are not required to submit documentation establishing they are fully vaccinated.  This includes seasonal employees and employees on extended leave, such as paid parental leave or military leave. Employees not in pay status or on extended leave will be required to provide proof of vaccination or must request and obtain an accommodation before returning to duty.  Employees who have submitted retirement packages or letters of resignation who are using leave in advance of departing federal service and do not intend to return to duty also are not required to submit documentation.

For more information on these topics, please visit the FAQs or USDA’s COVID Workplace Safety Plan – both of which are updated frequently.  Please send any concerns or questions to your Pandemic Coordinator or to futureofwork@usda.gov.

We are committed to putting the safety of our workforce and customers first and thank you for your service and for the important work you do for USDA.

Sincerely,

Tom Vilsack                      Dr. Jewel Bronaugh

Secretary                          Deputy Secretary