%PDF-1.7 ROBBIE FEINBERG, BYLINE: In November of 2019, Isaac MacDougal opened his cocktail bar Cocktail Mary. Call 1-855-608-5172 to reserve a ride at least 48 hours in advance of your appointment. mesurer votre utilisation de nos sites et applications. Major employers like Google, Tyson Foods, Walmart and others are joining health care systems in requiring vaccination as a condition of employment. Food and Drug Administration approval for schoolchildren is expected sometime this fall or winter. MACDOUGAL: Honestly, I haven't gotten any - I haven't had any problems. We're not losing their business because it was business we never had, nor probably would ever have.". Maine allows more time for required vaccinations as new COVID-19 cases If a Maine resident loses a vaccination card, they can still prove they got their shots. Wu said over 90% of the city's 18,000 workers are already vaccinated, but anyone who is not will have to do so by the Jan. 15 deadline as a condition of employment. Image: Katherine Chew Hamilton K-12 schools are so far not requiring COVID-19 vaccines for attendance, in large part because the vaccine isnt yet approved for those under age 12. 4 0 obj MACDOUGAL: My goal with signing this petition is to protect our frontline workers and our health care workers and keep them out of the hospital. Please subscribe or login first for digital access. Vilkhu said he's not afraid of losing business over the decision. There were still those who chose to use direct messaging to voice their opinions, however, Wright said in an email. COVID-19 testing is free andwidely available in Maine without an appointment. Tests are paid for by the Maine Department of Health and Human Services, and are offered free of charge. "This is meant to keep each and every one of our city workers safe," she said. "There is nothing more American than coming together to ensure that we are taking care of each other, that each and every one of our community members is safe and healthy and has access to the future and opportunities they deserve.". and even singing lyrics from "The Star-Spangled Banner," including the line, "O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave." Vaccination Sites | Covid-19 - Maine.gov COVID-19 dvelopper et amliorer nos produits et services. For the best protection, everyone 6 months and older should stay up to date with their COVID-19 vaccines, which includes getting boosters if eligible. Details are still emerging on how employers and schools will implement vaccine requirements as a condition of work or to attend classes. In his announcement, de Blasio said that he got a "very clear message" from the Department of Justice that such a mandate was appropriate. [CDATA[ Gado Gado is one of several Portland restaurants requiring proof of vaccination (in this case, for their indoor seating only). Do I have to wear a face mask in Portland? COVID Vaccine: Showing proof of vaccination is not new in New England It looks like you do not have any active subscriptions. "It's an experience and you just can't get that unless you're able to participate," he said. This pandemic has shown us that we are stronger than we ever imagined. VERIFY: The COVID-19 vaccine is free in Maine, even if you don't have insurance. "If the public health experts and our mayor believe proof of vaccination is in the best interest of public health, we too stand behind that decision. Starting on March 1, children over age 5 will be required to be vaccinated as well. Are Portland restaurants open for sit-down dining? Unvaccinated customers can still dine on the patio. <>/ExtGState<>/XObject<>/ProcSet[/PDF/Text/ImageB/ImageC/ImageI] >>/MediaBox[ 0 0 612 792] /Contents 4 0 R/Group<>/Tabs/S/StructParents 0>> Don't have a commenting profile? This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. You can find out more about our use, change your default settings, and withdraw your consent at any time with effect for the future by visiting Cookies Settings, which can also be found in the footer of the site. Wu said the new requirements will not affect outdoor dining or outdoor events like First Night Boston. The U.S. military added the COVID-19 vaccine to its list of mandatory vaccinations on Monday. All city employees will also be required to be vaccinated on the same timeline starting Monday. Supporters argue that a mandate would help both workers and diners feel safer and help restaurants stay open during the current wave of COVID-19 cases. CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) met today to discuss these COVID-19 vaccine . ///Metadata 280 0 R/ViewerPreferences 281 0 R>> The official site for the Greater Portland region of Maine. President Biden signed into law a House bill on April 10 that immediately ended the COVID-19 presidential declaration of national emergency established in March 2020. Kristen Hawley writes about the restaurant business from San Francisco. While it might feel a little strange at first to hand over proof of your own health at the restaurant's front door, just as masks felt strange months ago, business owners say they appreciate thatfor the most partpeople are happy or even proud to prove their vaccine status. At times the chanting made it difficult for those at the podium to hear themselves speak. Boston Mayor Michelle Wu announced new proof of vaccination requirements for restaurants and other indoor venues including gyms and theaters on Monday. On March 19, 2021, Governor Mills announced an acceleration to Maine's COVID-19 vaccination schedule. Enter your email and password to access comments. The U.S. CDC determines level of community transmission based on the number of cases in the last 7 days per 100,000 people and the percentage of tests in the last 7 days that have a positive result. Tests are free of charge and results are generally available in as little as one hour. Getting a COVID-19 vaccine or booster after you recover from COVID-19 infection provides added protection against COVID-19. Several Portland, Maine, restaurants have decided to only allow people who are fully vaccinated against COVID-19 to eat in their dining rooms. Even before Monday's announcement, union leaders toldthe Boston Herald that they were looking into their legal options. However, she added, "it's important to have our city on our side.". The Portland Hunt & Alpine Club is one week into enforcing its new vaccine requirement for indoor dining and co-owner Briana Volk says that asking customers to produce a vaccination card has. 1. Her work has appeared in Food & Wine, Insider, Eater, the San Francisco Chronicle, and more. A return to capacity limits and social distancing would be far worse . Its really not a big deal. In a statewide referendum 72% of voters favored the change. Chefs and restaurateurs instituting vaccine mandates may not be particularly thrilled to have to enforce compliance in customers weary from months of restrictions. State Vaccination Requirements | CDC Learn more. This includes people who have received all primary series doses and people who have previously received one or more original (monovalent) boosters at least 2 months ago. Diners can search restaurants based on those attributes, too. As of last week,. "Failure to get the vaccine because it's your own personal choice is not going to give you the same rights as it did before," said Lawrence Spasojevich, a civil rights and employment lawyer in New York. From 2001 until 2019 Maine's statute requiring mandatory vaccines for health care workers contained an exemption for medical reasons and religious and philosophical objections. FEINBERG: Whether Portland will institute new mandates will likely emerge on Monday night, when the City Council is set to meet next. Learn more. Already registered? MaineHealth, the parent company of Maine Medical Center in Portland and a health care network that includes 23,000 employees, is mandating that its employees get the COVID-19 shots by October. Everyone has a picture of their vaccine card on them and-or the vaccine card on their person, and everyone feels more comfortable and much more able to relax and much more at ease knowing that everyone else inside is vaccinated. Immunizations | Department of Education - Maine ISAAC MACDOUGAL: So I have been operating very, very cautiously throughout this entire pandemic in an effort to kind of build a clientele and create a space that felt safe for everybody. ", "We are not well if we are not vaccinated," added Heather White, founder and CEO of TRILLFIT fitness studio. No one in person has been upset about it. She said the restaurant has taken some criticism online about the move, but most people are supportive. Republican gubernatorial candidate Geoff Diehl, meanwhile, called the policies "clear violations of the civil rights of anyone who lives in, works in, or travels to the city" and said they "will make it even more difficult for Boston's economy to recover from the pandemic. She said hospital resources are "stretched thin" and that an estimated two-thirds of those hospitalized with COVID-19 in the city are unvaccinated. They says the mandate would protect front-line workers amid a surge in COVID-19 cases. Maines other 14 counties currently have moderate levels of community transmission according to the U.S. CDC and are thus not subject to the first recommendation. "This is just one step in an aggressive approach the city has already been working hard to implement," Wu said. The Maine Immunization Programs complete provider resource. Use our website to find accommodations in Greater Portland and throughout the state of Maine. Maine will also eliminate physical distancing requirements indoors, other than in settings in which people are. Sign in or Subscribe With the surge of the omicron variant across the country, many local officials are considering new restrictions to try to limit the spread. We havent seen a decline in reservations, weve seen an uptick, he said, explaining that the change is simply to protect both restaurant staff and area families, including his own -- he has young children. With an estimated 675 colleges and universities mandating vaccinations for students and staff this fall, some who are opposed to getting their shots may be willing to purchase fake cards instead of stopping into a clinic or drugstore to get free and easily-available vaccines.