NYC, big employers taking hard line against vaccine holdouts

New York on Tuesday became the nation's first big city to announce it will require proof of COVID-19 vaccination at restaurants, shows and gyms, joining the growing list of state and local governments and large employers taking a hard line against both the surging delta variant and vaccine holdouts.

Meat and poultry giant Tyson Foods said it will require all of its approximately 120,000 U.S. employees to get the shot over the next three months, becoming one of the first major employers of front-line workers to do so. And an estimated 150,000 unionized workers at the big three U.S. automakers will have to go back to wearing masks starting Wednesday.

“The goal here is to convince everyone that this is the time. If we’re going to stop the delta variant, the time is now. And that means getting vaccinated right now," New York Mayor Bill de Blasio said in announcing the aggressive new measures that will go into effect in mid-August.

Vaccination cards will be accepted as proof of inoculation, along with state and city apps.

COVID-19 cases across the U.S. have increased sixfold over the past month to an average of more than 85,000 per day, a level not seen since mid-February. Deaths have climbed over the past two weeks from an average of 254 per day to 386.

Florida has more people now in the hospital with COVID-19 than at any other time during the outbreak — over 11,500. Louisiana reported an all-time high of more than 2,100 hospital patients with the virus, most of them unvaccinated. Both states’ vaccination rates are below the national average.

“They’re just coming in faster than we discharge them. It’s definitely people in their 40s and 50s right now,” said Justin Senior, CEO of Florida Safety Net Hospital Alliance, which represents some of the largest hospitals in the...