More Of This Would Be A Good Thing

While it’s heartening to see nonprofit performing arts organizations demonstrate an ability to roll with the punches throughout the pandemic, it’s good to see municipalities begin to step in and provide guidance in the wake of the latest variant,.

New York City will become the first city to require vaccinations for indoor activities, which include concerts. According to an 8/2/21 article in Rolling Stone by Jon Blistein, NYC’s plan is to require attendees to produce their printed vaccination cards or use digital options adopted by New York earlier in the pandemic.

In San Francisco, the opera recently announced their decision to require proof of vaccination for anyone after 12 or older in order to attend events. Joshua Kosman provides details in an article for SFChronicle.com but given that California doesn’t have the same digital options pioneered by New York, patrons need to bring their printed vaccination cards or a photo of their card.

If nothing else, it’s good to see NYC take the lead by taking the burden of making this decision off arts org’s plates. Moreover, it provides an indisputable benchmark for enforcement, which is another pain point governments have been happy to pass along to commercial and nonprofit businesses alike.

At this point, the more decisions we get at the city, state, and federal level, the better. Provide business with the tools and mandate to keep patrons safe and maintain confidence.