Arlington, VA –  The National Waste & Recycling Association (NWRA) sent a letter to city and county officials around the country, urging them to vaccinate their workers against COVID-19 and the Delta variant. On August 23, 2021, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine for individuals 16 years and older.

“Just as NWRA has encouraged the private waste and recycling industry to get vaccinated, we call on our municipal colleagues to do the same,” said NWRA President and CEO Darrell Smith. “With the full approval of the Pfizer vaccine, we ask that every state, county, and municipality encourage or require their workers to be vaccinated, especially their municipal solid waste staff.”

NWRA’s request also comes after seven of the nation’s top organizations, including industrial hygenists, infection preventionists, epidemiologists, infectious disease physcians, pharmacists, school nurses, and occupational health and safety scientists called on governors to encourage or require vaccinations for government employees.