New York City to Require Proof of Vaccination for Indoor Dining, Fitness Centers

Chef Toshio Tomita at Cagen in the East Village

New York City will require people dining in restaurants, going to theater performances, and working out in a fitness center to show proof of vaccination.

The move was announced by the city’s mayor, Bill de Blasio, Tuesday morning.

The new policy is similar to mandates issued in France and Italy last month and is the first of its kind in the United States.

The requirement will go into effect later this month and enforcement will start in mid-September after a transition period.

“We think it is so important to make clear that if you are vaccinated, you get to benefit in all sorts of ways,” Hizzoner said on Monday in an interview on the local cable news station NY1. “You get to live a better life. Besides your health in general, you get to participate in many, many things.”

Not getting vaccinated will limit what New Yorkers can do.

“If you’re unvaccinated, there are going to be fewer and fewer things that you’re able to do,” the mayor said in the interview.

New Yorkers who aren’t vaccinated will still be able to dine in outdoor venues once the mandate goes into effect.

(Photo: Accura Media Group)