Indoor Fitness: Gyms and fitness venues, including, but not limited to, gyms, recreation facilities, fitness centers, yoga, Pilates, cycling, barre, and dance studios, hotel gyms, boxing and kickboxing gyms, fitness boot camps, and other facilities used for conducting indoor group fitness classes and.Indoor Dining: Establishments where food or beverages are served, including, but not limited to, restaurants, bars, fast food establishments, coffee shops, tasting rooms, cafeterias, food courts, dining areas of grocery stores, breweries, wineries, distilleries, banquet halls, and hotel ballrooms and.All of these figures are the worst they have been since January 2021, before vaccines were widely available.Įffective Monday, January 3, 2022, the Chicago Vaccine Requirements will apply to the following public indoor places: The large majority of Chicago’s COVID hospitalizations and deaths continue to be in people who are not vaccinated. More than 60 Chicagoans are being newly hospitalized with COVID each day and an average of 10 Chicagoans are dying from COVID each day. Chicago’s test positivity rate is now over 7%, up from 4.1% one week ago. The city is now averaging more than 1,700 new COVID cases in Chicago residents every day, a 79% increase from one week ago. I’m worried for their own health, but also for the risk they pose to others’ health and to our hospital capacity-and while we are in this concerning surge, we must limit that risk.”Ĭhicago was already experiencing a COVID-19 surge thanks to the Delta variant, and as the much more contagious Omicron variant has become dominant over the last week, that surge has dramatically worsened. I remain most worried about the hundreds of thousands of Chicagoans who still have not received a single dose of COVID vaccine nor recovered from COVID infection. “With Omicron, I do expect to see many more COVID reinfections and breakthrough cases, but luckily the vaccines continue to protect very well against severe illness, hospitalization, and death-and even more so when people have also had a booster shot. As we head further into the winter months, we must take this step now,” said CDPH Commissioner Allison Arwady, M.D. “This new requirement will not eliminate COVID risk, but it will help ensure a much safer indoor environment for fully vaccinated Chicagoans, as well as for the employees working in these higher-risk settings. The order will remain in effect until the City of Chicago is through this Omicron-driven surge and the risk of overwhelming hospital capacity has passed. The new order does not affect this mask requirement. The City of Chicago mask mandate also remains in effect for all public indoor settings. If any employees of these venues and establishments are not fully vaccinated, the employer must ensure that these employees both continue to mask when interacting with patrons and provide proof of a weekly negative COVID-19 test. Patrons age 5 and older must show proof of full vaccination patrons age 16 and over will also need to provide identification that matches their vaccination record. This public health order requiring proof of vaccination to visit certain indoor public places is a necessary measure to ensure we can continue to enjoy our city's many amenities as we enter the new year." "New steps must be taken to protect the health and wellbeing of our residents. "Despite our diligent and equitable vaccine distribution efforts throughout this year, unfortunately, our city continues to see a surge of COVID-19 Delta and now Omicron cases," said Mayor Lightfoot. This new requirement goes into effect on Januand is in response to an alarming rise in COVID-19 cases both locally and nationally, driven in part by the Omicron variant, and is similar to requirements already in place in other large cities, including New York City and Los Angeles. Lightfoot, the Chicago Department of Public Health (CDPH), and the Chicago Department of Business Affairs & Consumer Protection (BACP) announced that any individual 5 years of age or older will be required to show proof that they are fully vaccinated against COVID-19 to dine indoors, visit gyms, or enjoy entertainment venues where food or drink are being served.
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