On Friday afternoon, as generations have done every spring, baseball fans will head to San Francisco for the Giants’ home opening.
But to enter the stadium this year, they will have to bring something in addition to their ticket: proof that they have been vaccinated or the results of a negative COVID test performed in the last 72 hours.
This requirement – imposed by San Francisco public health officials – has Bay Area residents wondering: Is this a new trend or an outlier as California continues to reopen?
For now, it seems to be a unique case, experts say. But the larger issue continues to evolve.
President Joe Biden and Gov. Gavin Newsom recently said they would not require a “vaccine passport” or proof of vaccination for people to attend rallies or events. There were questions about confidentiality, fairness to low-income residents and the role of the government in creating a “does not have and does not have” system. Some states, especially Florida and Texas, have already banned the use of vaccine passports. But California counties can request them according to state health rules.
The Giants will have only 22% capacity in their first games – about 8,900 fans per game. The team says there will be random fan checks at the gates for the vaccine and test information and that the rules could change later in the season as more people in society are vaccinated.
“I think it’s rather unique,” said Dr. Monica Gandhi, a professor of medicine at UC San Francisco. “I think San Francisco is very cautious at the moment, but the requirement will probably disappear. It is enough to ask for masking and placing people in small groups. Testing adds a little to that. ”
Gandhi noted that no other California baseball team, including Oakland A, requires testing. Only two other national baseball teams, the New York Yankees and Mets, require proof of testing or vaccinations.
Gandhi is a member of the San Francisco 49ers health advisory board and said the board will not recommend the requirement for 49ers games when the team returns to play next season. Outdoor events pose a much lower risk to health than indoor events, she added, and participating in an event where people wear masks and are separated is essentially the same as going to the beach or dining at an outdoor restaurant. free, none of these require vaccine or test evidence.
“Do I think that will be the standard? Not really, “she said. “Outdoor transmission is very low. About 1 in 1,000 transmissions take place outside. If anything, we should encourage outdoor activity. Ventilation is as good as it comes out. ”
Health departments in several Bay Area counties, including Alameda and Sonoma, said Wednesday they do not intend to exceed state standards. For now, these rules do not require testing or vaccination to attend events. Rather, they set limits on how many people can participate.
Until June 15 in California, professional sports teams can have up to 25% of their pre-pandemic capacity, vaccinated or not, if their county is classified in the red reopening level. It rises to 33% in the orange level, which includes every county in the Bay Area except Solano, along with Los Angeles, San Diego, Santa Cruz, Monterey and others.
The San Jose Earthquakes, whose first home game is April 24, are planning a 20% capacity, with separate masks and seats, but no mandatory vaccination evidence or tests.
If the teams check if all the fans have given negative results or are vaccinated, the state rules allow up to 67% of the normal capacity while in the orange level.
Governor Gavin Newsom and other state officials have not said what will happen to the rules for sporting events after June 15.
The state has also issued rules that recently allow venues hosting concerts, plays or other events to meet larger crowds if it requires participants to demonstrate a negative COVID-19 test or a full vaccination. However, California will continue to limit certain major events, such as music festivals and indoor conventions. In the case of conventions, state regulations will ban events with more than 5,000 participants until October 1 – unless the organizers receive evidence of vaccinations or negative tests from participants.
Asked about the vaccine check in a news briefing on Tuesday, Secretary of State for Health and Human Services Mark Ghaly said: “There are no current plans by the state to impose or have a vaccine passport system.” .
“That being said,” Ghaly added, “We know that businesses are already exploring how to ensure that people who are vaccinated can come and enjoy some of the privileges of being vaccinated by screening.” This is an approach that many companies (and) many customers will expect, so we are working with a number of people and entities across the state to ensure that this is done responsibly, fairly and equitably. ”
That’s where the trend seems to be heading, said Dr. George Rutherford, an epidemiologist at UCSF. Rutherford said he supports the rules for the Giants as fans gather on the sidewalks outside the games, but expects the city to pick them up soon, while the number of cases continues to decline.
He said, however, that it is probably a kind of “vaccine passport” system – run by private companies, such as airlines and music promoters, that want to have more paying customers than state or federal rules might otherwise allow. and a lower risk of transmission. Both the European Union and China are moving forward with passport plans for vaccines for international travel.
“I think it’s inevitable,” Rutherford said.
Staci Slaughter, a spokeswoman for the Giants, said that while some fans may see the requirement as a problem, others said they are grateful for the extra layer of safety.
She would just say that the Giants “have a backup plan” for fans who show up with a ticket, but have no evidence of vaccination or a negative COVID test and have refused to explain what it is. “We have a way of working with them to make it easier for them to access the stadium if they show up without knowing what to do,” she said. “We’ll do this.”
It remains to be seen whether other parts of California will copy what San Francisco needs.
“I’m sure it will be county by county,” she said, “and as more people are vaccinated, there will probably be more consistency across the state. But it is difficult to predict these things. We all do our best. ”