Seattle to become the latest city to enact a vaccine mandate to dine out

Diving letter:

• King County, Washington, which also includes Seattle, has passed a new public health ordinance requiring a full vaccination or a negative COVID-19 test before entering any interior, including restaurants. The ordinance, which comes into effect on October 25, does not apply to outdoor restaurants, takeaways, and “places that are not primarily used as a restaurant, such as restaurants and bars. B. Grocery Stores “.
• The order offers an option for a longer preparation time for restaurants with fewer than 12 seats with a deadline of December 6th. The county noted that the order is unlikely to be permanent and will be reviewed in six months to determine needs.
• With this arrangement, Seattle will become the newest city to issue a vaccination certificate for dine-in shops. New York City, New Orleans, and San Francisco have similar assignments.

Dive Insight:

Such mandates come as the Delta variant continues its boom in the US, with nearly 2,000 new deaths reported each day. In March, before the vaccine became widely available and some eating regulations remained in place, CDC published a study that found disease and death rates from COVID-19 were higher in jurisdictions that allowed eating in on-site restaurants. In September 2020, another CDC report found that eating out in restaurants increased the risk of contracting the virus.

For its order, King County cited an analysis from the University of Washington that predicted vaccine verification policies in restaurants and other facilities could prevent “between 17,900 and 75,900 infections, 421 and 1,760 hospital admissions, and 63 and 257 on-site deaths over six months.”

In a statement, King County Executive Dow Constantine said: “We are at a critical point in this pandemic, with a high number of new COVID-19 cases and hospital admissions and no certainty of what will follow the Delta variant. The vaccination is our best protection against this deadly virus. “

However, such guidelines pose a risk to employees and the company in general as the industry continues to recover. For example, a restaurant worker in New York City was attacked last week for asking for proof of vaccination. A July report from Datassential found that nearly 30% of diners would leave a restaurant if asked to show their vaccination status.

The potential loss of customers isn’t necessarily something King County’s restaurants are well positioned for. The county was hit by the COVID-19 crisis and implemented restrictions well before the rest of the country.

Another study, however, showed that a similar proportion of consumers would actually be more likely to dine in a restaurant a vaccination mandate than refusing to dine in one. King County’s high vaccination rate, with over 85% of residents receiving at least one dose of vaccine, could protect businesses from the harmful effects of the order.

The King County’s ordinance gives time for residents to receive a second dose of vaccination and restaurants to train staff on vaccination checks. The arrangement, like the one in New Orleans, allows unvaccinated guests to enter a facility if they test negative. But lawsuits, similar to those filed against the New York City vaccine mandate, could delay or stop enforcement.

Nevertheless, the work pressure is affecting the entire industry and the churn rate is at an all-time high. The introduction of vaccination regulations could further deter some employees.

Even when orders are passed, some restaurants do not enforce them. According to Inside Edition, many Manhattan restaurants are failing to enforce the city’s vaccine mandate, which went into effect Sept. 13.