New York City fired 1,430 municipal workers after they failed to comply with a Covid-19 vaccine mandate that required them to get fully vaccinated and submit proof of their shots, in today's bite-sized hospital and health industry news from the District of Columbia, New York, and Washington.

• District of Columbia: HHS on Monday announced a $55 million award that will be distributed among 29 health centers to help increase access to health care in underserved populations through virtual care. The money from HHS' Optimizing Virtual Fund is intended to be used for telehealth, remote patient monitoring, digital patient tools, and health information technology platforms. "Today's awards will help ensure that new ways to deliver primary care are reaching the communities that need it most," said Carole Johnson, administrator for the Health Resources and Services Administration. "Our funding will help health centers continue to expand their virtual work while maintaining their vital in-person services in communities across the country." (Diaz, Becker's Health IT, 2/14)

• New York: New York City on Monday confirmed that 1,430 municipal workers were terminated after they failed to get fully vaccinated against the coronavirus or submit proof of their vaccination—a figure that accounted for less than 1% of the city's 370,000 workers. Among the terminated workers were new hires who received their initial does but failed to submit documentation for their second dose, and workers who were placed on unpaid leave after they refused to get vaccinated. "Our goal was always to vaccinate, not terminate, and city workers stepped up and met the goal placed before them," said New York City Mayor Eric Adams (D). "Out of all the new city employees who received notices two weeks ago, only two who worked last week are no longer employed by the city. I'm grateful to all the city workers who continue to serve New Yorkers and 'Get Stuff Done' for the greatest city in the world." (Eisenberg, Politico, 2/15)

• Washington: PeaceHealth Medical Group on Monday announced that Lisa Ivanjack was appointed as its new CMO. Ivanjack, who most recently served as CMO of Seattle-based Pacific Medical Centers, has 20 years of experience in medical leadership positions and as an internal medicine clinician. (Gleeson, Becker's Hospital Review, 2/14)