New York, the financial capital of the United States, will impose the coronavirus vaccine on workers in private companies at the end of December. This is the first measure of this type taken in the country, where it is already the first cases of the omicron variant have been detected of the coronavirus.
This was announced by the mayor of the city, Bill de Blasio, in a press conference in which he specified that the vaccine will be mandatory for employees of private companies as of December 27 So what will affect about 184,000 businesses.
“We have the tools, but we have to use them aggressively, and we have to act quickly. For this reason, we are going to take actions as a preventive attack, “declared the mayor, who had already advanced the measure on a television channel.
In this sense, Bill de Blasio has recognized that few cases of the new variant have still been detected in the United States, but has warned that it will “end up spreading”. “Only a few cases have been registered in several states, but we know that it is here, we know that it is going to spread, and at this moment it seems very transmissible,” the mayor warned, before insisting that the city cannot afford to return. of restrictions or closures.
Compulsory vaccination for children from 5 years old
According to the new municipal order, as of December 14 it will also be vaccination is mandatory for all children over five years of age, and, in addition, it will be necessary to show proof of vaccination in extracurricular activities considered “high risk”, such as sports, dance or instrumental.
By December 27, in addition, everyone over the age of 12 must have received both doses of the vaccine to access the interior of restaurants, gyms and entertainment establishments. So far, you can enter having received only the first of the doses. The mayor has indicated that on December 15 he will offer more information on the application of these measures.
Joe Biden’s strategy
De Blasio’s announcement came just four days after the country’s president, Joe Biden, put on the table a new strategy to minimize the impact of the new variant. Among the measures, there will be the obligation of all travelers arriving in the US to present a negative coronavirus test in the 24 hours prior to your flight, instead of the 72 hours required until now. “We are going to fight this variant (omicron) with science and speed, not with chaos and confusion,” Biden said at the time.
Despite this provision, the Biden government suffered a judicial setback on November 13, when an appeals court upheld the decision of block an executive order that dictates that companies with 100 or more workers ensure that their employees are vaccinated against COVID-19.
Asked about this question, the City Council’s business advisor, Georgia Pestana, has assured that the New York health commissioner “has the authority to issue a mandate like this one to protect public health “and has ruled out that the rule could be blocked in court.
For his part, De Blasio stressed that several factors that multiplied the risk at present: the transmissibility of the new variant, the cold climate and the characteristic meetings of these dates. “It is a real cause for concern and our health commissioner has the legal right to decide that there is something that is safe and that protects the health of all New Yorkers,” De Blasio has defended.
The public sector, vaccinated
The imposition of this vaccine occurs after public sector workers, from health workers, even policemen, were forced to get vaccinated, a measure that met with the resistance of several unions, which considered it illegal.
Finally, the compromise was reached to accept religious and medical exceptions Furthermore, those people who refused to be vaccinated were offered the option of taking a one-year leave of absence without pay, but with health benefits.
Impact on the Wall Street Stock Market
Despite the fact that the presence of the omicron variant has been detected only in half a dozen states, its global expansion has already affected the economy and fears of new restrictive measures have resulted in losses on the Wall Street Stock Exchange.
Although this Monday the main indicators of the Stock Market -Dow Jones, S&P 500 and Nasdaq- evolved positively, on Friday Wall Street pointed to a week of losses dragged by uncertainty posed by the new omicron variant of the coronavirus, which already caused massive sales the previous past, when it was identified.
Mario Twitchell is an accomplished author and journalist, known for his insightful and thought-provoking writing on a wide range of topics including general and opinion. He currently works as a writer at 247 news agency, where he has established himself as a respected voice in the industry.
