Would you show a COVID passport if it meant being able to go to concerts and sporting events again?
If you live in New York, you might have to.
Governor Andrew Cuomo announced this week that the state would begin rolling out a new pilot program that would require New Yorkers to show a “COVID passport” to get into arenas, theaters and other businesses.
The “Excelsior Pass” as they’re calling it would use secure technology to confirm whether or not a person has been vaccinated or has had a recent negative COVID test before allowing them entry to events. The passes, which would be similar to an airline boarding pass, would contain a QR code which individuals would be able to either show on their phone or print out to be scanned at the venue.
Right now the program is being tested at Madison Square Garden for New York Rangers games, as well as New York Knicks games at the Barclays Center.
It remains to be seen how long the program will remain in place for, and whether other states will begin to implement the same type of requirements as they begin to loosen restrictions and reopen.
Texas and Mississippi, however, have already announced that they’ll be reopening over the coming days at 100% capacity with no mask requirements, so I think it’s a safe bet that you’ll still be able to go to a show at Billy Bob’s without showing your passport.
Another big question is how many people are willing to comply with these kinds of systems just to get out and go to a concert or a sporting event.
If I had to guess, I’d say there’s a large percentage of people out there who would just rather wait until all the restrictions are removed before they head back out to concerts, or they’ll just find a show somewhere else – somewhere like Billy Bob’s.
