New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio stepped out on the national stage last week and declared that as of Aug. 16, the city will require proof of at least one dose of an approved COVID-19 vaccine for anyone who wants to eat inside any of the city’s more than 24,000 restaurants, workout in a gym, or attend a public performance.
Enough already with tiptoeing around the issue of mandates! Vaccines are the most effective tool we have to stop the spread of the deadliest pandemic in more than 100 years, a scourge which has already killed more than 613,000 Americans and at least 4 million people worldwide. Last week alone, the U.S. recorded an average of nearly 94,000 new cases per day, 48 percent higher than the preceding week.