San Francisco is expanding its vaccination mandate for city employees to include contractors who work with the city.

The mandate takes effect Dec. 31 and applies to contractors and nonprofit workers who work at city facilities or alongside city workers, the mayor's office said Friday. Contractors may be granted waivers for certain religious or medical exemptions, and the city manager is charged with implementing the mandate.

The new mandate represents a significant expansion of vaccine requirements for city workers in San Francisco, which was the first of its kind in the country when it was announced in June. San Francisco contracts with hundreds of companies, from construction and engineering firms to nonprofit social service providers.

According to the mayor's office, the obligation does not necessarily apply to all contractors: only employees who have regular personal contact with city employees are subject to the obligation. The mandate also applies to city commissioners.

The city is currently clarifying specific enforcement details, but companies working with the city must certify that eligible employees are fully vaccinated by the deadline.

“City contractors are an important part of the broader workforce that provides needed services to San Francisco. “It is therefore important that contractors also get vaccinated and help reduce the spread of COVID-19 in city facilities and among staff,” said Health Director Dr. Grant Colfax, in a statement.

According to the Department of Human Resources, 94% of city workers had been vaccinated as of Wednesday. Employees who do not comply with the vaccination requirement by November 1st, the final deadline for submitting complete proof of vaccination, must be terminated.

Some city departments with large frontline workers, such as the SFMTA and the Police Department, are preparing to lay off potentially hundreds of employees in November.

As of last week, 313 police employees, including 276 sworn officers, were unvaccinated, according to a department-wide email viewed by Here/Say Media. Of those employees, 228 requested religious exemptions, and the vast majority were denied.

This week, the SFMTA warned that more than 300 transit operators could be terminated on Nov. 1, causing “unforeseeable” disruptions starting over Halloween weekend and delaying their plans to restore service.

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The city of San Francisco is softening its mask rules ahead of the state of California.

Beginning Feb. 1, office workers, gym members and so-called “stable cohorts” of vaccinated and boosted (if eligible) individuals may remove their face coverings indoors again, officials said in a statement released Thursday. This change to the city’s mandate reinstates the exemption to California’s mask indoor mandate that was in place before the omicron surge, and allowed to remain in place by the state. The city voluntarily removed this exemption at the end of December.

Stable cohorts are groups of people who get together again and again in the same places, such as a yoga class, college class or religious gathering, for example. These stable groups must be fully vaccinated and boosted in order to take off their masks indoors, which is a change from the previous health order where boosters were not required for unmasking.

In accordance with the state’s mask rules, the city’s mask mandate remains in effect for most other public settings regardless of vaccination status. Children in schools, transitional kindergarten through 12th grade, are required to continue wearing masks indoors. Masks are also still required in retail stores, bars and restaurants or other places that are open to the public. People can continue to remove their masks temporarily in restaurants and bars to eat or drink.

San Francisco is reinstating the mask exemption that was in place under state law—before the Omicron surge. Starting Feb. 1, masks may be removed indoors for offices, gyms and other settings with 100% full vaccination and up to date booster shots when eligible. https://t.co/s24fg3P6oJ

— London Breed (@LondonBreed) January 27, 2022

The city also said it’s taking steps to align its health order with the California Department of Public Health’s order.

Beginning Feb. 1, you can enter indoor “mega-events” of 500 people or more with a negative COVID-19 test as an alternative to being fully vaccinated. The city will begin allowing religious and medical exemptions to vaccination requirements with a negative COVID-19 test for entry to indoor locations such as restaurants, bars, gyms and fitness centers.

With these changes coming, the city warned, “The public should be mindful that people in some settings may not be fully vaccinated or boosted and so should use good judgment when attending gatherings or events.”

For a rundown of all the changes made to the health order visit the San Francisco Department of Public Health website.

These changes come as cases are on the decline. The city reported a seven-day average of 1,370 new cases on Jan 19, compared with 2,244 at the peak on Jan 8.

“As we come out of this latest surge and face a future in which COVID-19 will remain among us, San Francisco will take a balanced approach in our response to COVID-19 by aligning with state requirements and guidelines where we can do so safely ,” Health Officer Dr. Susan Philip said in a statement. “We also acknowledge areas where we can be further ahead in easing restrictions, such as the indoor mask exemption for stable cohorts, given our highly vaccinated and boosted population. We will do so carefully and by following our local data and the science, as there are still San Franciscans who are medically vulnerable to the disease and communities that remain highly impacted when case rates are high.”

California issued a mandate requiring masks in indoor public spaces and workplaces on Dec. 15, 2021. It is in effect through Feb. 15, 2022.

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Dropping these requirements in San Francisco would “allow individuals to make their own decisions to protect themselves and their loved ones,” said Philip.

Berkeley’s announcement spoke about a “shift from requirements to recommendations” that reflected “the current phase of the pandemic, with hospitalizations and severe illness remaining low amidst an ongoing decline in infections.”

“Our COVID tools create a path to navigate the pandemic,” said Dr. Lisa B. Hernandez, Berkeley’s health officer. “As this latest surge fades, the safe path widens but the risks haven’t disappeared.” She urged residents to continue to get vaccinated and get their booster, and to wear a mask “when needed.”

We’ll update this story if further Bay Area cities or counties decide to roll back their proof of vaccination requirements. In the meantime, if where you live, work or study still requires proof of vaccination to enter bars, restaurants or gyms, here’s how to look up your California vaccine card online.

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California will drop the mask requirement inside K-12 schools. The new indoor mask policy will take effect on March 12.

gov. Gavin Newsom announces the state will continue to adjust its policies based on the latest data and science. According to the California Department of Public Health, nearly 3% of all of the state’s COVID-19 tests in the past two months were positive.

“We cannot predict the future of the virus, but we are better prepared for it and will continue to take measures rooted in science to keep California moving forward,” Newsom said.

San Francisco Unified School District, however, will continue the indoor mask mandate for public schools.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention highly recommends wearing masks inside schools by students and staff.

SFUSD’s press release states that masking is “one of the least burdensome policies on schools.”

“It helps prevent infections among students and staff and their families, and reduces missed school days,” San Francisco Unified School District Public Relations Manager Laura Dudnick said in an email.

San Francisco Board of Education President Gabriela López in an email said the district agrees to keep the “important safety tool” and will keep the mandate in place until the end of the school year.

Cassondra Curiel, president of the United Educators of San Francisco, a teachers union, said that there is a need for students to have high quality masks since many elementary school students are not eligible for the booster vaccine. When asked if teachers prefer masks, Curiel said it’s more nuanced than a yes or no.

‘Do we all love wearing masks?’ said Curiel. “The answer’s probably no, it’s not a loved thing but it is a necessary thing.”

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SAN FRANCISCO (CBS SF) – Officials with the San Francisco Unified School District announced Monday that masks will continue to be required indoors on campuses after the state drops the indoor mask mandate for schools next month, a decision that appears to be at odds with city health officials and Mayor London Breed’s office.

“No changes to SFUSD’s masking protocols are going into effect on March 11,” the district said in a statement. “Universal indoor masking will continue to be in effect at SFUSD as part of our layered approach to reduce the spread of COVID-19 in our schools.”

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District officials also reiterated that face masks are not required outdoors.

State health officials announced Monday that face coverings inside schools would no longer be required, but “strongly recommended” starting March 12, regardless of vaccination status.

“The strong recommendation is something to reinforce, that we’re not just moving from required to optional but that there’s gradations here,” California health secretary Dr. Mark Ghaly said at a briefing on Monday.

Counties and individual school districts continue to have the right to implement stricter requirements.

“As part of the updated guidance released today, public health officials are still recommending that masks be worn in schools. Health officials have stated that masking is one of the least burdensome policies on schools and is effective at curbing transmission,” SFUSD went on to say. “It helps prevent infections among students and staff and their families, and reduces missed school days.”

District officials said they are in regular contact with the San Francisco Department of Public Health to determine COVID-19 safety protocols and that they would confer with labor group representatives before making major changes.

Following the district’s announcement, Mayor London Breed said the city’s public health guidance would align with with the state, allowing for schools to drop the mask requirement on March 11.

San Francisco’s public health guidance will align with the new state guidance on masks, including no longer mandating masks in schools starting March 11. @SF_DPH will work closely with SFUSD and our school community to provide any guidance or assistance needed in the coming days. https://t.co/G52xzpkaYP

— London Breed (@LondonBreed) February 28, 2022

“[San Francisco Department of Public Health] will work closely with SFUSD and our school community to provide any guidance or assistance needed in the coming days,” the mayor tweeted Monday.

“As always, individual entities like school districts and businesses can choose to be more restrictive than the state and local guidelines and people can of course choose to still wear masks. I urge everyone to respect each other’s choices during this transition period,” Breed said in a subsequent tweet.

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Meanwhile, the San Francisco Department of Public Health issued their own statement explaining their decision to align with the state’s new guidance citing the city’s high vaccination rate, at 83% of all residents, including 69% of children ages 5 to 11.

“What enables us to align with the state in recommending but not requiring masking in school and child-care settings is the foundational work we have done as a San Francisco community to keep each other safe throughout this pandemic,” Health Officer Dr. Susan Philip said. “Masks are still an important prevention tool for now and in the future, and we may need to rely on masks again if we see new surges in cases or new variants. For now, with case rates continuing to drop, this is a safe step in a direction toward fewer restrictions.”

Parents in San Francisco who spoke to KPIX 5 had mixed feelings about potential changes to mask rules.

“My kids will definitely continue to wear them in school,” said parent Latoya Pitcher.

Jennie Menke has a kindergartner, who’s taking speech therapy and wants the option to choose.

It’s hard, but I want my child to be able to breathe and to have it off, and his freedom and have his life come back to normal,” Menke said.

Across the bay in Oakland, school officials there said they were waiting for revised guidance from the Alameda County Public Health Department to issue its own guidance before making a decision. The guidance is expected to be released in the coming days.

Along with schools, California health officials announced that masks would no longer be required for the unvaccinated but strongly recommended for all people in most indoor settings as of Tuesday.

Mask requirements remain in place in “high transmission settings” including public transit, emergency shelters, health care settings, correctional facilities and long-term care facilities.

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Kenny Choi contributed to this report.

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SAN FRANCISCO (AP) – Health officials in San Francisco and six other Bay Area counties have announced that they are reinstating a mask mandate for all indoor settings as COVID-19 infections surge.

Monday’s order applies to everyone, regardless of vaccination status, and starts on Tuesday.

California last week recommended that people wear masks indoors, but stopped short of issuing a mandate, following guidance from the US Centers for Disease Control.

Three other California counties have already adopted mandates as COVID rates rise because of the highly contagious delta variant.

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Proof of vaccination will be required at indoor bars, restaurants, clubs, theaters and entertainment venues, as well as indoor gyms and other fitness establishments. This does not include individuals ordering or picking up food or drink to go.

RELATED: Hundreds of SF city workers push back against COVID-19 vaccine mandates

San Francisco’s order also creates a new proof of vaccination requirement for large events at indoor venues, requiring attendees who are age 12 or older at events with 1,000 people or more to provide proof of vaccination.

Under the new order, a negative COVID test will no longer be considered an exemption to being fully vaccinated.

“We are not out of the woods as it relates to COVID, we are still going through it,” said San Francisco Mayor London Breed. “Of course, we’re sick and tired of it, but it’s not sick and tired of us.”

The health order will extend vaccination requirements to certain health care providers — including workers at adult day centers, residential care facilities, dental offices, home health aides and pharmacists, who are not included in the state health order on vaccinations.

The mandate does not include children under 12 who are not yet eligible for the COVID vaccine or people picking up to-go food orders.

“We don’t want people to think, a family of four with two kids seven years old that you can’t go to a restaurant – you can,” said Breed. “We know that your children cannot be vaccinated, but the parents will need to be.”

The requirement for patrons goes into effect on Aug. 20 and for staff on Oct. 13.

VIDEO: San Francisco Mayor London Breed announces new vaccination mandate

However, some say they are not prepared to serve guests and check their vaccination status because they are short-staffed.

Danielle Reese owns Queen’s Louisiana Po-boy Café on the Embarcadero.

She fears enforcing the mandate will mean a loss in tourist business.

“We don’t want confrontation with anybody on their political views as far as vaccines go, I’m just here to feed people,” said Reese.

Enforcing the rules is up to the business owners, and as Reese puts it, “We have enough going on as it is now.”

VIDEO: SF restaurant owner fears loss of business over vaccine mandate

As far as the mask mandates, that will remain in place. The health officers’ put the mask mandate in place to deal with the rapid spread of the delta variant, so they will continue to assess the indoor mask mandate.

County health officials say the city’s COVID compliance team, also known as CERT team, will be reactivated on a smaller scale to help with educating businesses. But enforcement on verifying vaccines and exemptions will fall on the individual business owners.

“It’s going to be a little unclear how to deal with an exemption situation,” said Laurie Thomas, the executive director of the Golden Gate Restaurant Association. “Each restaurant owner or business might have different legal advice.”

Businesses will be required to check a person’s ID and vaccination card match before allowing anyone indoors.

“If there’s six people in the party and one or two of them don’t have a vaccine card, they’re going to be asked to sit outside,” said Thomas.

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dr Grant Colfax says vaccinations are strongly recommended but not required for outdoor ‘mega’ events — where 5,000 or more people are attending. For example, vaccinations won’t be mandated for Giants games, but will be mandated for anyone dining indoors at the stadium.

The city is reporting 263 new daily COVID cases and have at least 107 people in the hospital as of Thursday, according to the mayor’s office.

The announcement couldn’t have come soon enough for MX3 Fitness co-owner Dave Karraker.

VIDEO: San Francisco business owners say they’re on board with latest vaccine mandate

“We’re already a health-driven industry and this gives our clients that one more piece of assurance that they are going to be safe when they go into a gym to workout,” said Karraker.

Karraker says his number one priority is the safety of his employees and members.

“We need to take every precaution possible to stop the Delta variant in its tracks.”

Restaurant Owner and Executive Chef Mat Schuster says his business Canela Bistro & Wine Bar started requiring proof of vaccination for customers indoors two weeks ago.

“We saw the writing on the wall and we wanted to be part of the solution,” said Schuster.

Customers will have the option of showing their actual vaccination card or a photo of it. You can also register your vaccination with the state.

Both Karraker and Schuster say they’ll do their best when it comes to verifying what they’re looking at is legit.

“As of now we are asking for pictures and for photo ideas but hopefully that process will get a little bit easier as it becomes more prevalent,” said Schuster.

“I think we really need to trust each other on this,” said Karraker.

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SAN JOSE (KPIX) — The deadline for some emergency workers in Santa Clara County to vax up or stay home is fast approaching, and if they don’t show up, there could be gaps in critical staffing positions.

A health order takes effect on Tuesday for all workers in so-called “high risk” occupations to provide proof of vaccinations and boosters, or they can’t report for work. That includes medical workers and firefighters.

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“We very, very much hope that people will go ahead and get their booster shot, it’s simple to do,” said James Williams, Santa Clara County Counsel.

The order has been looming for months, and fire departments and other agencies have been working to verify that their employees comply, but gaps remain.

“We did see over a 90 percent vaccination rate originally, and so we are expecting our booster rates to be similar,” said Erica Ray, a San Jose Fire Department spokesperson.

The department says 634 firefighters have been fully vaccinated which leaves 42 who are not according to published staffing levels of 676. The department doesn’t know precisely how many vaccinated, but not boosted firefighters there are.

To take up the slack if firefighters cannot report to work, the city plans to cover shifts with overtime.

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“We have been reyling on our members to fill in with extra hours. So we are very
confident in our ability to offer those critical services to our community,” Ray said.

Last week, firefighters from several agencies voiced concerns that relying on overtime to cover shifts is dangerous and called on supervisors to override the health department and respind the mandates.

“We have a critical staffing crisis in our EMS system and the hospitals. The public is now in jeopardy,” said San Jose Firefighter Barry Arata.

The county is making firefighter’s employers responsible for complying with the mandate, not the firefighters themselves.

“We will be proactive in reaching out and making sure that folks have complied with the order,” Williams said.

MORE NEWS: COVID: After Virtual Start UC Berkeley Students Return To In-Person Learning

Consequences for non-compliance could range from misdemeanor charges to monetary fines.

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A sign is posted at a COVID-19 vaccine site in the Bayview neighborhood of San Francisco on February 8, 2021. California is exempting San Francisco from a rule going into effect requiring all people to wear masks indoors. Haven Daley/AP Hide Subtitles

toggle caption

Port Daley/AP

A sign is posted at a COVID-19 vaccine site in the Bayview neighborhood of San Francisco on February 8, 2021. California is exempting San Francisco from a rule going into effect requiring all people to wear masks indoors.

Port Daley/AP

The state of California says the city of San Francisco is exempt from the state’s newly introduced mask requirement — everyone must wear a mask indoors.

The San Francisco Department of Health said Tuesday the city will continue to allow those who are fully vaccinated to remove their masks in gyms and workplaces, even as the state’s reinstated mandate requires that masks be worn indoors regardless of vaccination status Need to become. The nationwide mandate went into effect on Wednesday.

“This refinement recognizes the hard work of the people of San Francisco during the pandemic, including how we have maintained adequate protective measures during the holiday season,” the San Francisco Department of Health said in a tweet.

According to the department, about 86% of eligible San Francisco residents have received at least one dose of the vaccine, with more than 753,000 residents vaccinated.

So far, California has administered 62 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine.

“It’s a recognition of all the thought and care that San Francisco residents have put into staying as safe as possible,” said Dr. San Francisco Health Officer Susan Philip told the Associated Press.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom announced Monday news of the reinstatement of the indoor mask mandate as cases of the state’s coronavirus surged 47% over the past two weeks.

Earlier on June 15, state officials lifted the mask requirement for vaccinated residents.

“We know people are tired and hungry for normality. Honestly, so am I,” said California Secretary of Health and Human Services Dr. Mark Ghaly to AP. “Nevertheless, this is a critical time where we have a tool that we know has worked and can work.”

The nationwide indoor mask mandate is set to last until at least January 15, 2022.

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through: Aaron Tolentino, Nexstar Media Wire

Posted: Oct 19, 2021 / 3:20 PM PDT
/ Updated: Oct 19, 2021 / 7:15 PM PDT

An In-N-Out burger location was shut down by the San Francisco Department of Public Health last week because staff failed to properly verify customers’ vaccination records, the popular burger chain said in a statement.

In-N-Out said it duly posted signs of local vaccination regulations but refused to strictly enforce them, reports the KTLA sister station KRON.

“We refuse to become a government’s vaccination police,” said Arnie Wensinger, In-N-Out’s chief legal and business officer. “We strictly contradict any government dictation that forces a private company to discriminate against customers who choose to patronize their business.”

Since August, San Francisco has required proof of vaccination for people entering certain indoor businesses, including bars, restaurants, gyms, and major events.

Similar guidelines will apply in the city of Los Angeles, which is home to many In-N-Out locations, effective November 4th.

Located on San Francisco’s Fisherman’s Wharf, the restaurant has since reopened, but with no indoor dining. The restaurant is the only in-n-out location in San Francisco.

KRON reached out to the city health department for comment but did not receive an immediate response.

In San Francisco, according to the city’s latest data, 83% of eligible residents 12 and older are fully vaccinated.

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