In light of the continued COVID-19 pandemic and the seasonal flu virus, we’d like to take a moment to encourage everyone to stay healthy and the take steps below to reduce the transmission of communicable diseases:
- Stay home when you are sick.
- Wash your hands frequently with warm, soapy water for at least 20 seconds.
- Cover your mouth with tissues when coughing or sneezing (or an elbow if a tissue is unavailable), and discard used tissues in the trash.
- Take care of yourself. Exercise regularly, make healthy food choices and take care of your mental health and happiness to boost your immune system.
- Avoid people who are sick with respiratory symptoms.
- Clean frequently touched surfaces.
First and foremost, we want to maintain a safe work environment and encourage continued vigilance in protecting the health of our employees, customers, visitors and others. We also want to ensure the continuity of business operations during this time.
Alcohol-based hand sanitizers are available throughout the workplace and in common areas. Cleaning sprays and wipes also are available to clean and disinfect frequently touched objects and surfaces.
Medical coverage through Aetna covers 100 percent of the cost of flu vaccines for covered individuals at participating locations. We encourage you to have a conversation with your physician to determine if this is a good option for you.
It is critical that employees do not report to work while they are experiencing symptoms such as respiratory issues, fever, cough, shortness of breath, sore throat, runny or stuffy nose, body aches, headache, chills or fatigue. Currently, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that employees remain at home until at least 24 hours after they are free of fever (fever defined as 100.4 degrees F. or 37.8 degrees C.) or signs of a fever without the use of fever-reducing medications. Employees who report to work ill will be sent home in accordance with these health guidelines.
Field employees should maintain communication with their supervisors and managers and seek guidance regarding concerns with customer encounters. We are committed to ensuring safe working conditions for our employees as well as minimizing the spread of communicable diseases to customers and to the families of our employees and customers as best we can. We recommend erring on the side of caution when encountering a visibly sick customer, frequent use of hand sanitizers throughout the day and between appointments, and wearing gloves and masks when appropriate and/or required.
We will be following guidance from the State and County Departments of Health and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) as it is provided. The safety of everyone is at the forefront of our continued planning.