Home and Away actor Sam Frost will not be able to return to work at the show’s set unless she receives the COVID-19 vaccine, a leaked email has confirmed.
In an email obtained by The Herald Sun, Director of Production at Seven West Media, Andrew Backwell, confirmed on Friday that the network will “only engage fully vaccinated presenters, cast and crew.”
The email continued on to explain that staff at Seven Productions, including Home and Away, will need to be fully vaccinated by January 10th to continue work.
A spokesperson for the Seven Network told The Herald Sun that they had made the decision in order to “provide the safest possible work environment for cast, crew and presenters.”
While the network declined to comment on individuals, the mandate is likely to affect former Bachelorette turned actor Frost, who recently revealed she was not vaccinated.
Frost caused a stir earlier this month when she posted a video on Instagram stating that her mental health was suffering due to the “segregation” of being unvaccinated.
“I was really hesitant about doing a video or even speaking up about this sort of thing, but I feel like it’s getting to a point now in the world where there’s a lot of segregation, a lot of harsh judgment, and it’s taking its toll on my mental health,” she said.
“There are a lot of different reasons people aren’t getting vaccinated – and it might be because of their medical history, the concerns they might have, they might have family history, it might be religious reasons, whatever,” she continued.
“I want to tell those people that feel like they’re getting separated from society – well, I’m not vaccinated, and there’s a reason why I’m not, I’ve spoken to my doctor and my psychologist about it, and I’m going to keep it private.”
Frost went on to delete her Instagram account amid the backlash her post received but returned to the platform earlier this week to thank those who supported her “through the storm”.
“Thank you for the enormous amount of support over the past few weeks. I received thousands and thousands of beautiful messages & emails. I appreciate it, more than you’ll ever know,” she wrote in a since-deleted story.
“Incredibly grateful for my friends, family & work colleagues who held my hand through the storm, and loved me unconditionally,” she added.
Frost has played the role of Jasmine Delaney on Home and Away since 2017.
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