Businesses can enforce proof of vaccination for customers
Most Marin residents now see light at the end of the COVID-19 tunnel.
Initial glitches in California’s vaccine distribution effort have largely been surmounted. Thanks to a coordinated federal effort, ample vaccine doses are expected to be available for all who want the shot within a month.
The ideal scenario, the U.S. achieving herd immunity anytime soon, is unlikely.
That sweet spot is achieved when the vast majority of Americans become immune to any infectious disease due to vaccination or a prior contamination.
Once a threshold is crossed, estimated for the coronavirus to be 75% to 80% of adults, effective protection is reached even for those not immune to the disease.
That’s not going to happen due to millions of people unwilling to be vaccinated. The upshot is that mandated steps including face masks and social distancing will continue to be required to prevent subsequent outbreaks.
The preventable tragedy in the United States is that, unlike in the rest of the globe, the pandemic became political. Not wearing safety face masks, resisting social distancing and scorning scientists who recommend prudent measures remains a proud badge of identity for many supporters and enablers of the former president.
That’s the legacy of politicizing a germ.
The largest segment of those who refuse vaccination are Republicans. According to an NPR/PBS Marist College Poll, “49% of Republican men said they did not plan to get the shot compared with just 6% of Democratic men.”
Initially, Black and Latino residents were vaccination doubters. After outreach from civic and religious leaders, the poll reports 73% of Black Americans and 63% of Latino Americans now intend to get the vaccine or have already done so.
There are rational steps to protect the super-majority of Americans who accept the safety and necessity of COVID-19 vaccination. There’s no need for governments to issue official vaccination passports. That’s where the state requires proof of vaccination to enter selected venues, a process followed in much of Europe, Asia and Israel. It’s a step too far for many Americans.
It‘s also unnecessary.
The private sector is capable of enforcing reasonable standards to keep unvaccinated germ-spreaders separate from those who have taken prudent steps to protect themselves, their families and the greater community.
The San Francisco Giants organization presents a model of what responsible private businesses can do without government man dates. The goal of team officials is safely reopening the ballpark while attracting the greatest number of customers. The Giants’ standards include, “Fans 12 years and older are required to be fully vaccinated for COVID-19 for at least two weeks before the game or receive a negative test result for COVID-19 within three days of the first game they attend. Children under 12 are not required to provide a negative test.”
Restaurants, theatrical performances and other sporting venues, plus international air and cruise lines, will do well, both financially and as responsible corporate citizens, by adopting and enforcing similar standards.
All one needs to comply is presenting paper or digital proof of vaccination or the results of a negative Covid test. It’s what some states including Hawaii had required for entry without enduring quarantine.
Even absent state restrictions, many Californians won’t enter a café, bar or theater they consider unsafe. Without herd immunity, self-enforced rules similar to what the Giants employ enable businesses to enhance their bottom line by attracting safety-minded customers who otherwise would stay home.
For those in the anti-vaccine movement, Republican men and those freely choosing not to be vaccinated, there surely will be restaurants and taverns who seek their patronage.
The ground rule for private sector “no shirt, no shoes, no vaccine” service-denial enforcement standards is those businesses need to post brightly colored signage requiring documentation that all adults who enter are vaccinated or tested negative.