New York’s hospital and nursing home employees were mandated to receive at least one COVID-19 vaccine shot by Monday, September 27th to keep their jobs. But ahead of the deadline, barely half—56%—of the staff at the Highbridge Woodycrest Center, the nursing home Vicente runs in the Bronx, had done so…

Then something miraculous happened: People who had previously refused to get a shot came into the office holding out their vaccination cards. Another nine employees opted to get their first dose at an onsite vaccine clinic offered this week. Ultimately, only four of the 120 employees at the facility declined to get vaccinated, and one got a medical exemption. By Wednesday, Highbridge’s vaccination rate had risen to near perfect, 98.6%.

This scenario has played out across New York state, quieting fears that the vaccine mandate would exacerbate existing staffing issues at nursing homes and put their residents at risk. The at-least-one-dose vaccination rate among nursing home employees statewide went from 84% the week before the mandate took effect to 97% as of September 30th. Along with the mandate, outreach and vaccine education likely contributed to the uptick.