Covid-19: Expect ‘swift and severe’ level 4 lockdown if Delta emerges
New Zealand will move into a “short, sharp” alert level 4 lockdown if the highly infectious Covid-19 Delta variant makes its way through the border, Covid-19 Response Minister Chris Hipkins says.
His comments come as Australian states, including New South Wales, grapple with outbreaks and increasing daily cases and deaths. Hipkins warned all New Zealanders to plan for a lockdown at very short notice should a case emerge here.
“We are adjusting our response and our likely response to new more infectious variants as we seek to ensure that Covid-19 does not gain a foothold here,” he said in a Covid-19 update in Wellington on Wednesday.
Philadelphia Businesses To Require Proof Of Vaccination or DOUBLE Mask!
City leaders will announce mask or vaccine requirements for Philadelphia businesses and large outdoor non-seated events on Wednesday, a city official with knowledge of internal health policy discussions confirmed with NBC10.
The following COVID restrictions will be announced by city leaders, according to two sources:
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A mask mandate or proof of vaccination for customers and employees inside Philadelphia businesses, which will be effective Wednesday.
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All city employees will either need to be vaccinated or double masked by September 1.
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Any outdoor non-seated event with more than 1,000 attendees must require masks.
DC Mask Mandate ‘Through Thanksgiving’…
D.C. health officials hope the indoor mask mandate can be dropped by Thanksgiving — but that may not be possible if the numbers don’t improve.
As D.C. enters its second week of a new mask mandate and the delta variant spreads, the number of people getting tested at pop-up testing sites has jumped. The number of new cases is rising daily, though, and the number of people getting vaccinated is stagnant, at about 1,000 people per day.
Patrick Ashley, a senior deputy director of the D.C. health department, said the mask mandate is likely to be in effect for weeks to come.
France, Italy Impose Strict Mandate…
PARIS—Julien Zerbos turned away some would-be diners on Monday from the brasserie on Paris’s Champs-Élysées where he works because they didn’t have the European Union’s new digital health certificate.
France began requiring the passes, which certify that somebody has been vaccinated against Covid-19, on Monday for people seeking to dine at a restaurant, whether indoors or outdoors. The pass is now also necessary to take domestic flights and long-distance buses and trains. France already made the pass mandatory last month for a host of other activities such as entrance to museums, pools, gyms and large sports events.
“Some customers say they got the vaccine but didn’t come with the health pass, and we have to say sorry, we cannot accept you,” said Mr. Zerbos, who works as a host at Fouquet’s in Paris. “We can get in serious trouble if we accept someone without the health pass.”