The City of Philadelphia announced a vaccine passport rule for indoor dining and other venues that will take effect on January 13, 2022.
“Any place that sells food or drink to be consumed on-site will have to require that everyone who enters be fully vaccinated against COVID-19,” Philadelphia Health Commissioner Dr. Cheryl Bettigole announced.
Initially a negative test will be allowed, instead of a vaccine passport. However, after January 17, people will have to show a vaccine passport to enjoy a meal or a drink at a restaurant or similar venue.
Related: How vaccine passports are crushing freedom, privacy, and civil liberties
“That negative COVID test must have been for the last 24 hours,” Bettigole said. “Then, after January 17, negative COVID-19 tests will no longer be accepted and everyone must have completed their primary COVID vaccination series.”
The mandate also affects sporting venues, such as the Wells Fargo Center, which hosts the Flyers and 76ers.
“It applies to most of the Wells Fargo Center because people eat throughout the space,” she said. “We do not want to close our restaurants. So that’s the reason for the vaccine mandate.”
The mandate affects everyone aged 5 years three months and older.
Other cities that have implemented vaccine mandates include Los Angeles, New York, and San Francisco. Vaccine passports in these cities have sparked outrage, with critics arguing that vaccine passports create a two-tier society of the unvaccinated and vaccinated individuals.
