NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) — Mayor Bill de Blasio’s Key to NYC program expanded to a new age group Tuesday.
At the very least one dose of a COVID vaccine is now required for children as young as 5 for issues like indoor eating and coming into leisure venues.
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New indicators greet crowds of individuals exterior the Metropolitan Museum of Art, reminding individuals of the brand new guidelines, which left one mom, who was visiting from Tennessee, comfortable.
“Conserving him protected is completely the largest factor,” Erika Inexperienced mentioned.
Her 8-year-old son is absolutely vaccinated, so she mentioned she is all for the brand new mandate.
“A part of the rationale we selected to come back to New York is due to these vaccination necessities,” Inexperienced mentioned.
These 5 and older now want to point out proof of 1 vaccination dose to dine indoors, go to the films or different performances, and in addition for college actions, like sports activities, dance and band.
Then by Dec. 27, youngsters 12 and up should present proof of two doses.
WEB EXTRA: Where And How To Show Proof Of Vaccination For Indoor Activities
Most locations, just like the Children’s Museum of Manhattan on the Higher West Facet, have been reminding households on-line of the brand new in-person guidelines.
“Actually, it makes individuals like myself and household comfy to come back again,” native resident Heather Guardado mentioned.
Jodi Cohen, like many space dad and mom, mentioned the brand new guidelines are simple to observe.
“I uploaded pictures of their vaccination playing cards and have it on my cellphone,” Cohen mentioned.
Her husband is now capable of safely take their son to Tuesday evening’s Knicks sport.
“I’m excited as a result of it’s my first time going to a sporting occasion since COVID began,” 11-year-old Zack Cohen mentioned.
Watch Alice Gainer’s report —
Many youngsters heading to Tuesday evening’s efficiency of “The Lion King” on Broadway mentioned they have been glad to get the shot.
“Superior. I’m glad I’m vaccinated as a result of we will accomplish that many extra issues,” 8-year-old Avery Corridor instructed CBS2’s Dick Brennan.
“Not simply to get to the present, however to do different stuff with out the masks, and typically the masks may be, like, annoying, so typically you wanna simply take it off,” 10-year-old Graham Dini mentioned.
“I used to be really ready. I didn’t need to restrict what she will and might’t do, so I simply mentioned, we’re getting vaccinated it doesn’t matter what,” mentioned Shari Jackson, who was attending the musical together with her 10-year-old daughter, Shayla.
COVID VACCINE
CBS2’s Alice Gainer spoke to folks in Harlem, the place the vaccination fee is simply over 73%, which is decrease than Manhattan and New York Metropolis’s total fee.
READ MORE: Republican County Executives Say They Will Not Enforce New York’s Indoor Mask Mandate
“I feel it’s safer that manner,” one individual mentioned.
“It’s a superb rule, as a result of proper now lots of people are dying, even youngsters,” Pedro Moreles added.
Moreles has two youngsters, ages 7 and 14.
“They have been vaccinated a couple of month in the past,” he mentioned.
One girl who didn’t need to give her title mentioned her 6-year-old daughter shouldn’t be vaccinated.
“I’m gonna keep house. I’m not going out, I assume. I’m not gonna vaccinate her,” the girl mentioned.
Again on the Metropolitan Museum of Artwork, Mirlaine Baron of Queens mentioned she’ll solely get her youngsters vaccinated if the colleges mandate it. In any other case, they’ll discover someplace else to hang around.
“There’s at all times Lengthy Island. There’s at all times New Jersey. I simply gained’t be within the metropolis,” Baron mentioned.
CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC
The vaccine mandate comes as infections amongst kids are spiking, up 24% from simply final week.
Well being officers say the Omicron variant will quickly dominate the US attributable to its speedy progress.
“The primary challenge with this variant is that it’s much more transmissible than every other variant, which means it’s very, very contagious, so it may unfold from individual to individual fairly simply,” immunologist Dr. Purvi Parikh mentioned.
Regardless of Omicron spreading quicker, medical specialists say Omicron doesn’t look like as life-threatening in comparison with different variants.
“Its form of, like, mutating down so removed from what we’re seeing and what we’re listening to as a result of it’s not as, for lack of higher phrases, lethal because the Delta variant and because the preliminary variant we had a 12 months and a half in the past,” medical knowledgeable Dr. Alexander Salerno mentioned.
In the meantime, a listening to is scheduled Tuesday over the town’s vaccine mandate for municipal employees, impacting greater than 160,000 individuals, together with cops, firefighters and sanitation employees. A decide will determine whether or not to challenge a brief restraining order for the mandate, which ordered metropolis public workers to get their first shot by Oct. 29 or be forced to go on unpaid leave.
On the state degree, Gov. Kathy Hochul continues to be pushing her new mask mandate for indoor public spaces that don’t require proof of vaccination.
“Defend people’ lives, significantly throughout what we’re experiencing proper now, which is a vacation surge,” Hochul mentioned, including hospitalizations are up 70% since Thanksgiving. “We anticipated a spike after Thanksgiving and it has arrived, and so that is an alarming leap state-wide.”
She might not want to have great expectations. Rockland County Government Ed Day mentioned Monday he doesn’t need to take workers away from vaccinations to police masks carrying.
“My objection was logistical,” he instructed CBS2. “What number of calls I received as we speak — I had a girl who went to Kohl’s division retailer and so they virtually threw her out of the shop as a result of she didn’t have a masks on. This isn’t the best way to deal with a disaster.”
The indoor masks mandate shall be in impact till no less than Jan. 15, when Hochul will reassess COVID situations. If companies don’t obey, they face a superb as much as $1,000.
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CBS2’s Alice Gainer contributed to this report.
