New Year's Update on NY COVID Measures

Seyfarth Synopsis: In one of his first official acts as New York City’s new Mayor, Eric Adams signed an executive order extending the private worker vaccine mandate implemented in December by the outgoing de Blasio administration. Adams and New York State Governor Kathy Hochul also stated they might soon include booster shots in the definition of “fully vaccinated” for their respective COVID mandates. And the City highlighted FAQs it added to its guidance on the mandate.

If you were not paying close attention to developments on the vaccine and mask mandates for workers in New York City and New York State during the holidays, here is what you may have missed.

Mayor Adams Extends Vaccine Mandates

On January 1, 2022, soon after his inauguration, Mayor Adams signed executive orders that indefinitely extend the COVID-19 vaccine mandate applicable to healthcare workers, as well as private and City employees.  Mayor Adams did the same for the Key to NYC program, which requires proof of vaccination for access to indoor dining, indoor fitness, and indoor entertainment and meeting spaces. When announcing these steps, Adams stressed that “[t]he goal is to be cooperative and not punitive” in relation to employers and businesses subject to the mandates, with a pledge “to give support, and … to communicate.”

On January 2, after the City set a new record for COVID-19 cases, Mayor Adams further stated that “our next move and decision” will be to expand the definition of “fully vaccinated” to include booster shots for eligible individuals. He added, “If we feel we have to get to the place of making [boosters] mandatory, we’re going to do that, but we’re encouraging [workers] to [get a booster shot] now.”

Revisions to NYC Vaccination Mandate for Private Employees FAQs

In addition to Mayor Adams’s announcement, the City updated the FAQs for the private worker vaccine mandate.

After the first set of amendments to the FAQs in mid-December (on which we reported here), the City responded to the requests of stakeholders (including Seyfarth) by revising the FAQs to highlight the six latest additions. It is apparent that the City received enough questions on these topics to warrant an updated set of FAQs.

The updated FAQs clarify that:

1. Workers who did not complete the two-dose vaccination within 45 days of the first dose should be excluded from the workplace;
2. There is no need to verify vaccination status for workers who are fully remote;
3. There are no exceptions for workers based on their industry or job duties;
4. There is no need to verify the vaccine status of customers or visitors under the private worker mandate (although they may be covered under the separate Key to NYC program as summarized here);
5. There are no exceptions to the mandate for workers because of claims of limited vaccine availability; and
6. There is no requirement to pay employees who haven’t provided proof of vaccination or requested a reasonable accommodation by December 27, 2021.

Governor Hochul Seeks to Expand Mask Mandate

Under the mask mandate applicable to indoor venues throughout New York State, employers must implement a vaccination policy that requires all visitors to show proof of full vaccination to enter the premises or require them to wear a mask. On December 30, 2021, Governor Hochul announced that she plans to introduce legislation providing that the definition of “fully vaccinated” includes receipt of a booster.  A day later, she took executive action to mandate booster doses for students at state-run universities before they return to campus.

Seyfarth will continue to monitor developments in this space and provide updates as appropriate.