As baseball fans head to San Francisco for the Giants opening game Friday, they will be required to show proof of vaccination or a negative COVID test result in order to be admitted, the San Jose Mercury News reported Wednesday.
That requirement, implemented by city health officials, may be “more of a one-off,” said Dr. Monica Gandhi, a professor of medicine at UC San Francisco.
“I think San Francisco is being very cautious right now, but the requirement is probably going to go away,” she told the Mercury News. “Requiring masking and seating people in small groups is enough. The testing adds little to that.”
The idea of a so-called “vaccine passport” has generated controversy in recent weeks, with multiple states already outlawing them. Wednesday, Idaho Gov. Brad Little issued an executive order banning the state government from adopting one. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott banned them in the state Tuesday.
Other states have embraced the vaccine passport. New York rolled out the “Excelsior Pass” in late March, and Hawaii is currently testing technology needed for a vaccine passport when interisland travel reopens.
President Joe Biden has said he will not require proof of vaccination for people to attend gatherings.