Steph Deschamps / August 4, 2021
Proof of vaccination will be required in New York City to enter restaurants, sports and entertainment venues, Democratic Mayor Bill de Blasio announced Tuesday, making his city the first in the United States to create a vaccine passport.
The scheme, dubbed the Key to NYC pass, will require vaccination of employees and patrons of indoor restaurants, sports venues and entertainment venues, the mayor explained at a press briefing, noting that at least one dose of vaccine would be required.
If you're vaccinated you have the key, you can open the door. But if you're not vaccinated, unfortunately, you're not going to be able to participate in a lot of activities, de Blasio said.
He said the scheme would be launched on August 16, but that the first enforcement checks would take place from September 13.
For the past two weeks, the mayor and the governor of the State of New York, Andrew Cuomo, have made numerous announcements to reinforce the vaccination of public servants and recommend the wearing of masks, in the face of a resurgence in the number of cases of Covid due to the Delta variant.
In New York City, a city of more than 8 million people, 71.8 percent of adults have received at least one dose of vaccine, according to City Hall figures.