Healthcare providers hired to help with COVID-19 have ending contracts

MISSISSIPPI (WCBI) – A nursing shortage in Mississippi could come to the forefront again next month.

Over 11,000 contract healthcare providers were hired to help with the COVID-19 surge this summer.

Their contracts all expire on Sunday.

This will leave many hospitals scrambling to find more nurses or simply rehiring the contracted workers.

In other news, the Mississippi State Department of Health says it has pre-ordered nearly 50 thousand doses of the COVID-19 vaccine.

The move comes in anticipation the federal government will approve shots for 5 to 11-year-olds early next week.

More than 300 providers in the state have signed up to give the shots.