The Mayo Clinic in Minnesota fired 700 unvaccinated health care workers on Tuesday, despite nurses at the clinic issuing a warning several weeks ago about staffing issues. “While Mayo Clinic is saddened to lose valuable employees, we need to take all steps necessary to keep our patients, workforce, visitors, and communities safe,” the Mayo Clinic said in a statement Tuesday in confirming the mass firings. “If individuals released from employment choose to get vaccinated at a later date, the opportunity exists for them to apply and return to Mayo Clinic for future job openings.” The employees had until Monday to get the COVID-19 vaccine. Officials said the 700 workers who were terminated represent approximately 1 percent of the Mayo Clinic’s 70,000 employees. “While final numbers are still not available, nearly 99 percent of staff across all Mayo Clinic locations have complied with the required vaccination program, meaning they have been vaccinated …