David Robinson reports in the Poughkeepsie Journal that on Jan. 7 Gov. Kathy Hochul mandated a COVID-19 booster shot for health care workers in the state, because of the rising numbers of vaccine breakthrough infections caused by the omicron variant. A state Health Department panel must approve the mandate on Jan. 11. If they do, workers at hospitals, nursing homes, and other health care settings need to get the booster shot within two weeks of becoming eligible, Hochul said. New York implemented one of the nation's first vaccine mandates for health care workers on Sept. 27. "We're asking them to do the right thing once more," Hochul said. The state's hospitals are struggling with nearly 11,600 hospitalizations Jan. 6 from COVID-19. As of Jan. 4, 22 percent of the 94,000 direct care workers in New York nursing homes have gotten a booster shot, while about 35 percent of fully vaccinated Americans have taken a booster shot. Read more about this story in the Poughkeepsie Journal.