Los Angeles City Council voted 13-0 Wednesday to approve a motion that will require residents to prove vaccination status before entering indoor public spaces. With the unanimous vote, L.A. City Attorney Mike Feuer will now be charged with drafting an ordinance that will make its way back to the council for another vote.
City Council president Nury Martinez announced news of the vote on Twitter, adding, “Your decision to remain unvaccinated doesn’t just affect you — it affects us all.”
Wednesday’s vote comes a week after Martinez and City Council colleague Mitch O’Farrell introduced the motion that would require residents to prove they’ve had at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine prior to entering indoor public spaces.
“Unvaccinated individuals are at greater risk of contracting and spreading COVID-19 making themselves and their communities vulnerable. In addition, they pose a threat to children under 12 years of age who are not qualified to receive a vaccine,” the motion states.
Martinez included action requests for the chief legislative analyst to report back with an implementation strategy, and for the Community Investment for Families Department to report back on how to expand its Vax UP L.A. campaign and determine what resources would be needed for additional outreach.
According to L.A. County’s COVID-19 vaccine dashboard, more than 6.3 million residents have received at least one dose of the vaccination, translating to 71.5 percent of the area’s population, leaving nearly 4 million unvaccinated and vulnerable to infection.
News of the mandate comes amid heightened concerns of the infectious delta variant that has led to a swath of vaccine mandates. Earlier today, Governor Gavin Newsom announced that California school employees would have to prove vaccination status or submit to regular tests in order to work in the state’s school system. The move follows a similar policy for state employees.
This article was originally published by The Hollywood Reporter.
