Starting Monday, you won’t be able to visit places like restaurants, bars, or retail shops without presenting proof that you’ve been fully vaccinated for COVID-19.
Many are having mixed reactions to one of the strictest vaccination requirements in the country.
The city of Los Angeles is hoping to end the pandemic by encouraging more people to get vaccinated and officials think requiring people 12 and older to show proof before entering an indoor business will do just that.
“I think it will encourage more people because now, you can’t go to restaurants or anywhere if you’re not vaccinated so there’s no other choice. you just stay at home and don’t do anything or you get vaccinated,” Naima Hassan said.
Restaurants like Strada Eateria & Bar in downtown LA say they’ve trained their staff to check proof of vaccination when customers arrive.
Bartenders will too since they already check IDs.
“We’ll try to enforce it to the best of our ability,” Julian Andrei, founder and managing partner of Strada Eateria And Bar, said.
Management doesn’t expect any major hits to their business because of the city’s latest mandate since they’ve got plenty of seating for customers outside.
“If somebody for some reason forgets their proof of vaccination, then we can seat them in our courtyard or front patio,” Andrei said.
Critics argue the city of LA’s mandate will backfire on local businesses.
“Are we hurting the economy at the cost of trying to be safe and are the consequences of that going to outweigh whatever good we do protection-wise?” Jared Dixon said.
Other businesses that must comply include gyms, entertainment venues, nail salons and other personal care services.
If customers are not vaccinated then they must show proof of a negative COVID-19 test taken within 72 hours of the visit.
“Hopefully, the city and the county will align themselves so there’s not going to be any discrepancy because that’s where the main misunderstanding is happening,” Andrei said.
People don’t need to live in the city of Los Angeles for this to affect them.
Even if they travel here, they will still need to show proof of vaccination before entering indoor businesses.
