DC adds a vaccine mandate for indoor dining and other activities

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There are a lot of reasons DC will bleed money that we residents are aware of (if our socialist city government doesn't change course) but this is not one. I have not been dining out specifically because there is no vaccine mandate. However, I did book a trip to NY which has one in place for pretty much all entertainment and tourist activities. While I personally think the omnicron surge has overtaken all of this, it's a good precedent and when the surge subsides will encourage me to do more in my hometown of DC. It's beyond time for this. Now Biden needs to impose a vaccine mandate for air, train etc. travel.

Have you been watching the Covid numbers in NYC? How do you think a vaccine mandate makes it safer for you to eat inside at a restaurant.

Vaccines make it so that the person who has been vaccinated is less likely to be hospitalized or die. However, a vaccinated person can still catch and transmit Covid. A restaurant is no ‘safer’ with a vaccine mandate. Despite what Pfizer wants you to believe.

I agree--and I won't be eating indoors any time soon. Neither will unvaccinated people in DC, which I'm fine with. It makes them less likely to contract covid (indoors/unmasked) and tie up hospitals (BECAUSE THEY ARE UNVACCINATED). Some of us would like routine medical care to resume, thanks.

The exemption loopholes in DC are fairly broad so there could be quite a few unvaccinated people unless they choose to spend their money elsewhere.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Church exception is ridiculous.
I wish they could apply it to the museums.

I'm guessing that was due to so many museums being federal.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I would LOVE to see all the flyover country people turned away outside the Smithsonians

The mandate does not apply to museums.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Does this include places like Starbucks?

Not if picking up order to go, yes if sitting in Starbucks, unless one of the broad exemptions is claimed.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Pure theater.

+1 million

As if things aren’t bad enough for DC businesses. This will just make it worse.

That is regrettable but the only other responsible decision possible would be to close most of these businesses. They simply can't be allowed to continue to operate with zero precautions.

The staff deserves vaccinated guests. I agree.

Employees are not covered by the mandate so are not required to be vaccinated at this time.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Pure theater.

+1 million

As if things aren’t bad enough for DC businesses. This will just make it worse.

Yup

People who are vaccinated can still catch and spread Covid. These policies do nothing but hurt businesses. They also make people working jobs they are already not paid enough to do turn into the vaccine police

This. And it stinks. Like with the mask mandates. I work in an industry that deals with the public and not a single staff person wants to deal with this kind of BS enforcement.

A lot of struggling small businesses do not have staff to enforce this.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The science is there for vaccine mandates, mask mandates, social distancing, and anything that encourages people to be fully vaccinated/boosted and wear masks to prevent further spread.

maybe when it comes to real vaccines that actually prevent the infection and spread of a virus. but the covid vaccine does neither. Just means you won't get really sick.

If we can all catch and spread it then a vaccine mandate and card does nothing. Looks at the areas with high vaccination rates and how they are still seeing a huge increase in cases right now

The data is clear, and unfortunate. The mandate in DC has pretty big loopholes too.

Try to support your local small businesses, if you can. They are barely holding on as it is. I wonder how many from MD or VA will be less inclined to go out to eat in DC? Dine in helps margins for sure, with drinks, etc. Tickets for take out are smaller and rarely get tipped on. And now a staff member has to be deputized to enforce this. In places that have a lot of take out orders seems that confusion will be likely to ensue, thinking Starbucks and other fast casual without a host/hostess at the door.

[Anonymous]

Wonder how this will affect DC Restaurant Week! Already a tough environment to hold Restaurant Week.

The patrons who want a vaccine passport, likely won’t be dining out inside restaurants anyway, regardless of this mandate.

[Anonymous]

The vaccines seriously cut down on hospitalization. This is true even for omicron. DC has been trying hard to get the hold-outs to vaccinate, because it wants to be able to provide hospital care to people who don't have covid. For example, if I get into a car accident, I would like to be able to go to an ER that is not overrun by unvaccinated people with covid. You can even get the government to come to your house and vaccinate you! So now you have to have some punitive measures to get people to vaccinate. And that means making it vaguely more difficult to do fun but unnecessary stuff. Some businesses will enforce, some won't. I doubt there will be any government oversight of who is enforcing or not.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I just heard this on WTOP. Wow. Required for everyone 12+. That’s ballsy.

I’m vaccinated, but my 14yo son is not. Not a chance we’ll be eating anywhere in DC. Either NoVa or MoCo for now (until MoCo passes the same nonsense).

Honestly, I'm relieved to hear this. We're all going to have to pitch in to get through this and the farther those that refuse to pull their weight are from my city the better.

We also have serious reasons to be concerned for business owners, but public health needs to remain the higher priority.

So... don't let the door hit you in the arse on your way out.

This doesn’t keep us safer. If they actually wanted to prevent spread they would require a negative PCR within 24 hrs. Everyone knows the vaccines don’t stop the spread, just severe illness.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I just heard this on WTOP. Wow. Required for everyone 12+. That’s ballsy.

I’m vaccinated, but my 14yo son is not. Not a chance we’ll be eating anywhere in DC. Either NoVa or MoCo for now (until MoCo passes the same nonsense).

Nobody cares. Your spot will be filled by people who prefer to dine with other vaccinated people.

You mean those who prefer to get Covid only from vaccinated people?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The vaccines seriously cut down on hospitalization. This is true even for omicron. DC has been trying hard to get the hold-outs to vaccinate, because it wants to be able to provide hospital care to people who don't have covid. For example, if I get into a car accident, I would like to be able to go to an ER that is not overrun by unvaccinated people with covid. You can even get the government to come to your house and vaccinate you! So now you have to have some punitive measures to get people to vaccinate. And that means making it vaguely more difficult to do fun but unnecessary stuff. Some businesses will enforce, some won't. I doubt there will be any government oversight of who is enforcing or not.

CDC is finally admitting that those previously recovered from Covid have stronger immunity than those just vaccinated. Of course, they still push the recovered to vax for even better bulletproof protection for which they still have no data. But as far as hospitalizations are concerned previously infected Covid recovered ARE indeed at no more risk to clog the healthcare than those double or triple vaxed. So... This means that DC mandates are discriminatory towards this group of people at least based on latest CDC information.

Here is the hospital conundrum. How come that now, 2 years into this we are still stressing out about hospitals like it's spring of 2020 when we got extra facilities quickly built up and army ship sent to NYC hit the hardest? Even in the worst mortality wave NYC/NJ in spring 2020 when literally about 1000 people would drop dead DAILY we didn't get our hospitals overrun and none of these facilities were used? They were closed unused. NYC/NJ hospitals were able to handle the onslaught of very vulnerable patients never exposed to Covid when this disease ripped through the unprotected/unrestricted city where unmasked crowded the subways and public indoor places spreading it like fire.

Now, 2 years into this with high vaccination rates, with treatments on the way and heavily used we are still freaking out about hospitals being chocked up with people having a milder variant? Explain how so.. Could it be shortages of medical staff that's been fired because they refuse vaccination after Covid recovery? Let's call it what it is, this isn't caused by pandemic, but by incompetence

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The science is there for vaccine mandates, mask mandates, social distancing, and anything that encourages people to be fully vaccinated/boosted and wear masks to prevent further spread.

maybe when it comes to real vaccines that actually prevent the infection and spread of a virus. but the covid vaccine does neither. Just means you won't get really sick.

If we can all catch and spread it then a vaccine mandate and card does nothing. Looks at the areas with high vaccination rates and how they are still seeing a huge increase in cases right now

The data is clear, and unfortunate. The mandate in DC has pretty big loopholes too.

Try to support your local small businesses, if you can. They are barely holding on as it is. I wonder how many from MD or VA will be less inclined to go out to eat in DC? Dine in helps margins for sure, with drinks, etc. Tickets for take out are smaller and rarely get tipped on. And now a staff member has to be deputized to enforce this. In places that have a lot of take out orders seems that confusion will be likely to ensue, thinking Starbucks and other fast casual without a host/hostess at the door.

Well, tough sh**, what do you want us to do? We cannot go and dine indoors. Yes, it would be terrible if our favorite restaurants close and wont' make it, but it's not our doing! It's up to the restaurant and other business owners to stand up to the ridiculous experimental measures that failed everywhere already. We, the customers will take our money where we are welcome - in NOVA. DC will suffer, it's the outcome of bad policies. And even if DC government wakes up and feels like removing the mandates, it will make them look stupid, so they will keep them going for a while. I am sorry for DC restaurants and hospitality industry. We have a family employed there and I am genuinely worried

[Anonymous]

I’m in MD and won’t be visiting our favorite DC spots until this is over. I probably spend only a few grand a year in DC, but I’m sure I’m not alone. Also, some of us are vaccinated but don’t want to subject our kids to a vaccine that hasn’t gone through the normal protocol.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I just heard this on WTOP. Wow. Required for everyone 12+. That’s ballsy.

I’m vaccinated, but my 14yo son is not. Not a chance we’ll be eating anywhere in DC. Either NoVa or MoCo for now (until MoCo passes the same nonsense).

Honestly, I'm relieved to hear this. We're all going to have to pitch in to get through this and the farther those that refuse to pull their weight are from my city the better.

We also have serious reasons to be concerned for business owners, but public health needs to remain the higher priority.

So... don't let the door hit you in the arse on your way out.

Cool. Some businesses may disagree. And some maybe not, of course.

I have a family of 5 and we go out to eat once a week. And a few times a month, we go out with my in-laws. Sure, we’re not the Bidens, but we probably spend a decent amount of money every month dining out.

If there are a few other families like us, who opt out of DC and go to NoVa, then I would imagine it makes a little bit of a difference. I guess, we’ll see.

Lol please don't come to NOVA. We are a family of 6 and spend thousands per month eating out, and don't want your unvaccinated heathens in our restaurants

And how will you keep them out exactly? How had you been keeping out your own NOVA unvaxed? Good luck with that. I suggested looking for a house in DC now, or just move to NYC right away. If anything, there will be hoards of unvaxed in VA restaurants that also won't be enforcing masks either.