We could all use a vacation right about now, but the people who really need one are the workers on the frontlines of the coronavirus pandemic. The travel industry apparently agrees, as over 4,000 staff at NYC Health + Hospitals/Elmhurst in Queens, New York, have received a three-night vacation compliments of Hyatt and American Airlines. From doctors and nurses to facilities and food service workers, they’ll all get free round-trip flights and hotel accommodations at various vacation destinations in the U.S. and Caribbean.
The respite is much-needed – and well-deserved. New York has been the state hardest hit by COVID-19 in the country. Around 335,000 people have tested positive for the virus and over 21,000 have died there, forcing Elmhurst’s 545-bed occupancy to up its ICU capacity by 500 percent.
“Every worker at Elmhurst has seen and experienced challenges many of us cannot imagine. They’ve given so much of themselves and chose to serve their community with care, compassion and equity for every patient,” American Airlines President Robert Isom said in a press release. “When they are able to take a break, we hope the time away will help them and their loved ones recharge and that they feel our deepest appreciation for their sacrifice and heroism.”
Of course, all these workers have to wait for travel to be safe again, and in the meantime, continue protecting themselves from infection. At least there’s a light for them at the end of this (long, terrifying, dark) tunnel. If we were these lucky health care workers, we’d take off on that vacay and never come back.
Cover Photo: LightFieldStudios (Getty Images)
Mandatory Good News: 10 Stories of Local Restaurants Feeding People for Free
MORE GOOD NEWS:
Mandatory Good News: Bar Owner Donates All the Dollar Bills Stapled to Her Walls to Furloughed Employees
Help Prevent the Spread of the Coronavirus
Visit the Centers for Disease Control at CDC.gov or the World Health Organization at Who.int for the latest information on the coronavirus and learn what you can do to stop the spread.
Follow Mandatory on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
Good News of the Week For 5 1 20
-
Mandatory Good News: Two Very Good Dogs Deliver Beer Curbside to Save Their Mom’s Company
-
Mandatory Good News: Mobile Haircuts Come to New York City Health Care Workers
-
German Health Care Workers Get Naked to Raise Awareness About PPE Shortages (And to Remind Us What Naked Women Not in Porn Look Like)
-
NBC’s Two Biggest TV Sitcom Casts to Reunite For Charity, Honestly We’ll Take Anything They Give Us
-
Mandatory Good Deed of the Day: Send Art Supplies to Kids Whose Parents Have Given Up on Homeschooling
-
Mandatory Good Deed of the Day: Do a Pizza Drop For Someone in Need
-
Man Wins Powerball Jackpot Twice in One Day, Likely to Offer Serious Cash to Anyone With Toilet Paper
-
Brad Pitt Steals a Solo ‘SNL’ Cold Open as the Only Candidate For Man of the Year (Besides Himself)