CA's New Mega-Event COVID-19 Rules Take Effect

CALIFORNIA — Californians attending large indoor events will no longer be able to self-attest their vaccination or testing status beginning Tuesday. Californians will need to show proof of vaccination or a recent negative coronavirus test upon entry, with some counties allowing only vaccinated attendees.

All venues planning events with 1,000 or more attendees are required to enforce the new policy this week. The mandate is set to remain in place until Nov. 1. For what the state identifies as "mega-events," attendees will need to show their vaccine cards upon entry or proof of a negative COVID-19 test from within the 72 hours before an event, according to California's Department of Public Health.

Last month, the state announced the new policy in an attempt to stave off the intensifying summertime surge fueled by the deadly and highly transmissable delta variant. The new rules came on the heels of similar mandates for health care workers, hospital visitors and all K-12 school staff.

"The Delta variant has proven to be highly transmissible, making it easier to spread in large crowds where people are near each other for long periods of time," Dr. Tomás J. Aragón, the state's public health officer, said in a statement. "By requiring individuals to be vaccinated, or test negative for COVID-19 at large events, we are decreasing the risk of infection, hospitalization and death."

Californians were previously allowed simply to self-attest to being vaccinated or having tested negative. But the new rule requires digital or physical proof. Previous guidelines applied only to events with 5,000 or more people; the new rules lowered the threshold to 1,000.

For outdoor events, the same rules take effect if the event has 10,000 guests or more. Officials recommended— but didn't require — that venues not accept self-attestation to verify vaccination or testing status.

In Los Angeles County, officials took the state's requirements a step further by limiting access to many public indoor places to those who are vaccinated. A new health order required customers and employees of bars, breweries, night clubs and lounges to have at least one dose of the vaccine by Oct. 7 and both doses by Nov. 4.

"As evidence mounts affirming the safety and effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccines, vaccination mandates are an increasingly important tool to prevent future COVID surges that cause widespread suffering," said Barbara Ferrer, the county's health officer. She added, "This is a reasonable path forward that can position us to be better able to break the cycle of surges."

California's top public health officials are set to review the measures by Oct. 15 to determine whether the mandate will linger into the holiday season and beyond.

The new policy came down at the height of the delta variant's California takeover, with the state's positivity rate swelling to 6.1 percent the day the new rules were announced. On Tuesday, the state's positivity was 2.9 percent. And this week, the Golden State returned to having the lowest case rate in the final weeks of the season, according to recent federal data.

READ MORE: CA Has The Lowest Coronavirus Case Rate In The Nation

As of Monday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported a seven-day case rate of 95.3 new cases per 100,000 people, according to the Los Angeles Times.

Coronavirus infections began plummeting in recent weeks as vaccinations rose among residents.

As of Monday, 82.8 percent of eligible Californians had received at least one dose of a coronavirus vaccine. The news came as the state prepares to roll out booster shots for immunocompromised residents.

Nearly 58 percent of California's nearly 40 million residents were fully vaccinated as of Monday, according to data from the Mayo Clinic. The state's coronavirus vaccination rate fell behind those of Washington, New Mexico, Maryland and New York.

"We have a vaccine that can help end this," Gov. Gavin Newsom tweeted Monday. "Get vaccinated."