Unvaccinated Delta Air Lines employees will face $200 increases to their insurance premiums to cover hospital costs for infected employees starting on Nov. 1.

Unvaccinated employees will also be subjected to indoor masking and weekly COVID-19 tests beginning on Sept. 12 in order to protect co-workers and travelers. Delta is not the only airline looking to drive up vaccination rates. Other airlines such as United have mandated the vaccine.

Airlines were one of the hardest-hit industries during the pandemic and would later receive a $14 billion bailout from the federal government. Without the bailout, airlines like Southwest would have lost $1 billion. The rise in the Delta variant is already affecting bookings for Southwest, American Airlines, and Spirit.

“The average hospital stay for COVID-19 has cost Delta $40,000 per person,” said Delta CEO Ed Bastian in an employee memo.

Bastian said the surcharge will be necessary to address the financial risks employees create after not getting vaccinated, adding that all Delta employees who have been hospitalized due to COVID-19 have not been vaccinated.

New reported cases of COVID-19 in the U.S. are up to 150,000 per day as U.S. air travel remains down more than 20% from 2019.

Delta also said starting Sept. 30 “in compliance with state and local laws, COVID pay protection will only be provided to fully vaccinated individuals who are experiencing a breakthrough infection.”

Bastian said about 75% of Delta’s 75,000 employees are vaccinated and that the company hopes to get as close to 100% as possible. Delta requires new employees to get the vaccine.

Companies such as Chevron, CVS, Amtrak, AT&T, Bank of America, Facebook, Google, McDonald's, Lyft, Mircosoft, Walgreens, Walmart, UPS, and more all require their employees to get vaccinated.

Coronavirus