When the Made In America festival returns to the Benjamin Franklin Parkway in Philadelphia on Sept. 4 and 5, all concertgoers will be required to show either proof of a vaccination or a negative COVID-19 test from the previous 48 hours, Desiree Perez, CEO of Jay-Z’s Roc Nation management company, said Wednesday afternoon.

Perez said that if ticket holders do not have proof of vaccination or a negative test, they will be able to take a rapid COVID-19 antibodies at the gate of the Labor Day weekend festival. Anyone without one of those three qualifications will be barred from entry and will have their ticket refunded.

In addition, all patrons will be required to wear masks when not eating or drinking inside the festival grounds.

Perez said that the event, which will be headlined by Justin Bieber and Lil Baby, is selling faster than ever. “We’re trending towards 60,000 people,” per day, she said. Perez added that Roc Nation is working with the city to expand the traditional site to allow room for testing outside the gates. The festival will also be introducing an app in the coming weeks that allows concert goers to upload their vaccination status in advance to facilitate their entry.

Philadelphia announced new restrictions Wednesday requiring masks for non-seated outdoor events with more than 1,000 people. The city does not mandate masks if proof of vaccination is required, but venues can choose to require both.

The Roc Nation CEO stopped short of guaranteeing the festival would take place, in the wake of festival cancellations such as the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival, whose October dates were cancelled earlier this week.

“Anything can happen, we all learned that the hard way in March last year,” she said. “I would say I’m confident right now. As long as Philadelphia is open and moving forward, we will be open. This is part of life now. We have to learn to live with this nasty demon of COVID ... We’re coming here and we have to respect the city and we want everyone to be healthy, and for it to turn out nicely, as it always has.”

» READ MORE: Made in America is returning to the Parkway on Labor Day weekend

— Dan DeLuca

At the city-owned Mann Center for the Performing Arts in Fairmount Park, masks will be required at all areas of the venue’s campus, except when eating and drinking.

That applies regardless of vaccination status for patrons in both the Mann’s seated TD Pavilion amphitheater, which will host the Can’t Wait Live free concert on Friday with Saweetie, Mavis Staples, and others, and the outdoor general admission Skyline Stage, where Jason Mraz headlines on Aug. 20.

Following the city’s press conference earlier in the day, the Mann issued a statement Wednesday afternoon, saying: “The Mann Center for the Performing Arts remains committed to presenting safe, outdoor concert experiences for its patrons. To align with evolving public health directives and for the safety of all patrons, effective as of 12:01 am on Thursday, Aug. 12, everyone ages 2 and above, regardless of vaccination status, will be required to wear masks in all areas of the Mann campus unless actively eating or drinking. Patrons should bring their own masks to the Mann. We will continue to monitor developments and remain prepared to adjust our policies quickly and safely as needed. We thank our patrons, in advance, for helping us maintain a safe experience for all to enjoy.”

— Dan DeLuca

Beginning Thursday, Philadelphia’s courts system will require employees, judges, and members of the public to wear masks while indoors, regardless of their vaccination status.

The courts system was already strongly recommending indoor mask-wearing for everyone who entered, including judges, police, attorneys, and jurors. A spokesperson said officials will not at this point ask entrants about their vaccine status, but said they “remain prepared to adjust protocols as necessary.”

The First Judicial District, which includes criminal and civil court functions, has more than 2,000 employees, though some have continued working remotely amid the pandemic.

— Anna Orso

Philadelphia’s new rule mandating masks in all indoor businesses — unless everyone inside is required to prove they are fully vaccinated — will go into effect at midnight on Thursday.

Here’s what you need to know.

The city announced new mask and vaccine requirements for all indoor businesses on Wednesday.

Masks are once again required at all indoor businesses and institutions, whether or not you’re vaccinated, unless the business is requiring staff to get vaccinated and is requiring proof-of-vaccination from patrons.

This means all indoor businesses, not just restaurants. It’s indoor offices and any indoor gathering space.

Masks are also required at non-seated outdoor events with more than 1,000 people.

The move comes as more employers, cities, and states are requiring proof of vaccination. As of Sept. 1, the city will also require all new hires to be vaccinated, and current city employees to be vaccinated or wear two masks while at work.

» READ MORE: Everything you need to know about Philly’s new COVID-19 vaccine and mask requirements

— Jillian Wilson and Oona Goodin-Smith

With the start of the 2021-22 arts season still weeks away, the immediate effect of the city’s new mask directive on most performing arts groups and venues was minimal.

Patrons will be required to wear masks on the premises of the region’s largest arts venue, the Kimmel Center — both inside the halls and in other spaces such as Commonwealth Plaza — with the center’s expected reopening in September.

No changes in audience capacity or social distancing are currently envisioned.

“At this point, we are following CDC and government recommendations. We are not anticipating any distancing in the halls,” said Kimmel chief operating officer Ed Cambron.

A number of COVID-19 mitigation measures are nearly complete at the Kimmel, he said, including changes to the HVAC systems to meet CDC recommendations — increasing the number of fresh air intakes per hour, and using recommended MERV-13 air filters.

The Kimmel Center has announced an ambitious schedule for its return to live performance, including a lucrative 48-performance run of Hamilton in the Academy of Music opening Oct. 20. Reopening is slated for Sept. 18 with “Arts Launch,” a free day of events and activities organized to celebrate a return to in-person performances.

LaNeshe Miller-White, executive director of Theatre Philadelphia, which promotes the local theater community, greeted the new city mask mandate as a welcome development since various theaters have had various policies. “This is even easier,” she said.

As for the expectation that this was going to be the summer of quelling the virus so the arts could come back in the fall unencumbered by COVID-19, Miller-White said: ”Not happening quite the way we had hoped.”

— Peter Dobrin

New masking restrictions announced Wednesday by the city won’t freeze the spread of COVID-19, public health experts said, but they will play a role in slowing the spread in the virus to protect workers and keep case counts from surging ahead of school reopenings.

What remains critical, though, they said, is boosting vaccination rates in Philadelphia, where less than 40% of people are vaccinated in some zip codes.

“We need the city to do whatever it can to ensure vaccinations in the city and at the same time be responsive to the changes in trends,” said Usama Bilal, an assistant professor in Drexel University’s department of epidemiology and biostatistics.

Philadelphia is now requiring masks inside city buildings, at unseated outdoor gatherings of more than 1,000 people, and in indoor businesses and institutions, unless staff and patrons must confirm they’re vaccinated. In restaurants and bars, staff must all be masked and diners must wear masks to their tables to eat or drink, when they can remove them.

The city has yet to implement new capacity limits, though. Philadelphia is also requiring all new city employees be vaccinated, and existing employees be vaccinated or wear two masks while working.

The delta variant has made COVID-19 resurgent, health officials said, and complicated the promise of full protection vaccines offered, though vaccination largely prevents infection from the variant, and still provides excellent protection against hospitalization and death.

Average new cases a day have doubled three times in the past month, said Cheryl Bettigole, the city’s acting health commissioner.

”Since we don’t have the vaccination rates we hoped we would have,” Bilal said, “we need to combine that with other measures.”

Since the beginning of August, Philadelphia has reported 5% or more of all COVID-19 tests are positive, a red flag that warranted renewed restrictions, said Michael LeVasseur, another Drexel professor and epidemiologist.

“Since cases are increasing, we are seeing breakthrough infections, we are seeing hospitalizations tick up a little bit, I think these are appropriate measures,” he said.

In comments during a news conference Wednesday, Bettigole said in about two-thirds of cases when the infected person could identify where they caught COVID-19, the transmission was traced to a family or friend in the home. That number may be exaggerated, LeVasseur said, since it’s easier to identify an infected friend than someone in a public space who passed on the virus, and the number didn’t negate the need for more serious protections in public spaces.

”People working in a bar, people working in a supermarket, we need to be protecting workers,” Bilal said. “To protect those people is one of the key goals of the indoor mask mandate.”

He noted, too, that the people with jobs that require in-person work were more likely to live in some of the least-vaccinated neighborhoods in the city, some of which are also among the city’s poorest. “It’s in those neighborhoods where cases go up,” he said.

After a year and a half of tightening and loosening restrictions, LeVasseur acknowledged people would likely be exasperated by new restrictions, particularly coming after the city lifted its masking requirements just two months ago.

”I think it’s going to be difficult for some people to get back into the swing of it,” he said. “Those who were wearing masks before will wear masks again, those who hated it are going to be more reluctant to do it and more angry about it.”

The restrictions, though, offer a consistent baseline citywide, he said. Some people will ignore them. Everyone won’t behave exactly in accordance with restrictions, but it is an intervention that will have an effect, he said. “What we need to do is intervention to minimize risk,” LeVasseur said. “If we are going to keep bars open, let’s do things to keep risks as low as possible.”

— Jason Laughlin

In a word, yes, says Eric Feldman, professor of law and medical ethics and health policy at the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School. And, he adds, the idea of businesses requiring vaccination cards to enter or use their services is not much of a controversial topic in the legal community.

“It’s quite clear that restaurants, airlines, cruise ships, your local café, your local university, [or] the school that you may choose to send your child to are all within their legal bounds in asking you to demonstrate that you or your child has been vaccinated,” he says.

In some ways, it’s along the lines of the commonly seen edict of “no shirt, no shoes, no service,” or even dress codes. Generally, private businesses can decide who they are willing to serve, and what kinds of requirements they impose on folks who enter — so long as they are not being discriminatory based on things like race, gender, or religious affiliation.

And requiring vaccine cards, in most cases, is not likely to be seen as discriminatory, though some may view it as more of an imposition than needing to wear shoes or a shirt.

“Sure, a restaurant can say, ‘You’ve got to wear shoes.’ Sure, a restaurant can say, ‘You’ve got to show us you’re vaccinated,’” Feldman says.

» READ MORE: Can businesses require you to show your vaccine card?

— Nick Vadala

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention urged all pregnant women Wednesday to get the COVID-19 vaccine as hospitals in hot spots around the U.S. see disturbing numbers of unvaccinated mothers-to-be seriously ill with the virus.

Expectant women run a higher risk of severe illness and pregnancy complications from the coronavirus, including perhaps miscarriages and stillbirths. But their vaccination rates are low, with only about 23% having received at least one dose, according to CDC data.

“The vaccines are safe and effective, and it has never been more urgent to increase vaccinations as we face the highly transmissible delta variant and see severe outcomes from COVID-19 among unvaccinated pregnant people,” CDC Director Rochelle Walensky said in a statement.

The updated guidance comes after a CDC analysis of new safety data on 2,500 women showed no increased risks of miscarriage for those who received at least one dose of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine before 20 weeks of pregnancy. The analysis found a miscarriage rate of around 13%, within the normal range.

» READ MORE: In pregnancy, the decision to get a COVID-19 vaccine can feel especially fraught

— Associated Press

With the first day of school less than a month away, parents are divided over whether schools should mandate COVID-19 vaccination or masks for students, according to new data from the Kaiser Family Foundation.

Just under 60% of parents of children aged 12 to 17, who are eligible for the vaccine, and 54% of younger children, who aren’t eligible yet, do not want schools to require vaccination as a condition for in-person attendance, according to Kaiser Family Foundation’s COVID tracking poll, which included a nationally representative sample of 1,259 parents reached by phone or online between July 15 and Aug. 2.

A larger share of parents — 63% of those polled — support mask requirements for students who are unvaccinated.

The poll found a partisan divide among parents, with Republican parents more likely to oppose masking and vaccination requirements, while Democratic parents were more likely to support these rules.

The poll also found that parents’ plans for their children and opinions about school requirements largely reflected their own behavior. Half of unvaccinated parents said they would “definitely not” get their 12-17 year-old vaccinated.

Overall 63% of parents said contracting COVID-19 is a greater threat to their child’s health than the vaccine, but there were sharp divides among parents, depending on their political affiliation and vaccination status.

While 83% of Democratic parents said they believed COVID-19 was a bigger threat, 55% of Republican parents said the vaccine was a bigger health threat.

Similarly, the vast majority of vaccinated parents felt the virus was a greater threat, while unvaccinated parents overwhelmingly said they were more worried about the vaccine’s health risks.

The three approved vaccines have been thoroughly tested and found to be safe and effective.

— Sarah Gantz

Weavers Way Co-op, which operates stores in Mount Airy and Chestnut Hill, on Aug. 2 reimposed a mask mandate for employees and also encouraged shoppers to wear them regardless of vaccination status, but some customers complained, said Jon Roesser, the co-op manager.

“We had a few outliers, we have some anti-maskers who give us a hard time but the overwhelming majority of people just shrug their shoulders and put on their masks,” he said.

“We’re happy that it’s now city mandated, it makes our life so much easier when it comes to customers, just be able to say. ‘Yeah this is this is a public health mandate.’ It’s not really up to us individuals.”

Weavers Way also operates a story in Ambler, Montgomery County, where the voluntary mask requirement remains in place. “It doesn’t seem like the political will is there for the State Department of Health to follow suit,” Roesser said.

In anticipation of the mayor’s announcement Wednesday, Roesser said the two city stores posted signs Wednesday with the new mask guidance in anticipation of the mayor’s announcement. The co-op also provides disposable masks for customers who forgot to bring one.

— Andrew Maykuth

Although the coronavirus resurgence fueled by the delta variant is far worse in other parts of the country, Philadelphia has seen its case counts skyrocket in recent weeks, Acting Public Health Commissioner Cheryl Bettigole said Wednesday while announcing new safety rules for businesses and events.

After seeing the average number of new cases per day dip to the low 20s in early July, the city reported 181 newly confirmed cases on Wednesday. The city’s average daily count of new COVID-19 cases has doubled three times in the last month, Bettigole said, and the positivity rate of coronavirus tests have jumped from 1% to 5%.

“Five percent is relatively low, but five times higher than it was a month ago was deeply concerning,” Bettigole said.

There are now more than 100 COVID-19 patients in Philadelphia hospitals, up from a low of 48. There are 13 people infected with the virus in intensive care units.

Bettigole said she is concerned about situations like that in Austin, Texas, where there is a high vaccination rate but hospitals are overwhelmed because the city is surrounded by areas with lower vaccination rates. Unlike the South, area hospitals remain far from their capacity, and the city is not in danger of having to ration medical resources.

The city will look at several different metrics when considering whether to left restrictions or make them even more restrictive, Bettigole said. But she is still hopeful that vaccination rates will increase enough for the city to lift those measures.

“We should be able to break free from this cycle,” Bettigole said.

— Sean Collins Walsh and Laura McCrystal

Philadelphia’s new indoor mask mandate for businesses that do not verify that their patrons are vaccinated will be enforced primarily through a complaint-driven process, Acting Public Health Commissioner Cheryl Bettigole said Wednesday.

Businesses that are seeking to avoid the mask mandate should have clear signage at their entrances indicating they will be verifying customers’ vaccination status, she said.

“Bartenders and restaurants are used to carding people for age. It’s not any different than that,” Mayor Jim Kenney said at a virtual news conference announcing the new rules.

If the city receives complaints that a business is not verifying vaccinations despite indicating it will, inspectors will check out the business and the city can issue citations, Bettigole said at a virtual news conference. Bettigole did not detail the penalties available to the city.

Businesses and institutions that choose to mandate vaccination for customers and staff should check vaccine cards or pictures of those cards, Bettigole said. They do not have to register with the city if they will require vaccination.

Businesses that are not verifying vaccination status can also get in trouble for not requiring employees or customers to wear masks indoors.

The process is similar to the one employed in the first era of COVID-19-induced shutdowns and regulations, when the city responded to complaints about businesses flouting rules and occasionally sent out inspectors for spot checks.

Bettigole said the city opted not to follow the lead of New York, which has a pass system to check vaccination status and requires it for all indoor dining and gyms, because the technology is too complex. But she said the city still wanted to have an exception to the mask mandate because many businesses are already requiring vaccination to protect their staff and patrons.

“We’re asking businesses that do have a vaccine requirement to have a reasonable system for enforcing,” she said.

Bettigole said officials are concerned about fake vaccine cards, but said she believes “fakes are going to be the minority.”

— Sean Collins Walsh and Laura McCrystal

Philadelphia’s new mask mandate for all indoor events gives clarity to music venues and promoters who have been scrambling to come up with a consistent safety policy to respond to the spread of the delta variant.

Starting with the first of Japanese Breakfast’s shows last Friday, Union Transfer has been requiring all ticketholders to provide proof of vaccination or a negative COVID test and to be masked inside.

That policy was put in place at the discretion of the artist, as part of a growing movement by touring acts who want to play before vaccinated crowds. Union Transfer co-owner Sean Agnew said the venue plans to keep that policy in place for all of its shows, at least through September.

“We have been closed for 17 months. $0 in revenue,” Agnew said. “We almost lost Union Transfer. We had to shutter our other venue” — South Philly’s Boot & Saddle — “for good.”

“I realize that other businesses and patrons may not be in favor of asking patrons to mask, but we feel like it’s not too terrible of an ask. A minor inconvenience. We will continue to comply and ask all guests to wear masks and will likely continue to require guests showing proof or vaccine or negative COVID tests.”

— Dan DeLuca

Philadelphia is requiring all city employees who are not vaccinated to wear two masks while working indoors, Acting Public Health Commissioner Cheryl Bettigole announced Wednesday.

Additionally, all new city employees hired after Sept. 1 will be required to be vaccinated, she said.

At a virtual news conference, Bettigole demonstrated how to wear a surgical mask under a cloth mask, saying it provides roughly the same level of protection as an N95. She said she understands it will be uncomfortable for city workers to double-mask while working, and encouraged them to get the vaccine instead.

“It does seem cumbersome but luckily there is something else that you could to protect yourself,” she said. “You could be vaccinated.”

The announcement comes a day after the city’s largest union for municipal employees, AFSCME District Council 33, signaled that it would not oppose the city if Mayor Jim Kenney’s administration sought to impose a vaccine mandate on city workers, so long as the policy included exceptions for people who are not inoculated due to religious and medical reasons. The School District of Philadelphia, Community College of Philadelphia, and other agencies are adopting similar measures.

The Kenney administration, however, is stopping short of a full vaccine mandate by allowing unvaccinated employees to come in to work.

» READ MORE: Double-masking can increase your protection. But not all masks should be layered.

— Sean Collins Walsh

Philadelphia’s new mask rule, requiring masks in all indoor businesses or institutions unless all staff and patrons verify that they are fully vaccinated, will take effect at midnight.

“The science is clear: these measures will protect Philadelphians and save lives,” Mayor Jim Kenney said.

Acting Health Commissioner Cheryl Bettigole said the new restriction will be implemented in an effort to slow the spread of the delta variant.

“Everyone in Philadelphia must wear a mask when going into any business or institution with an exception for those that require vaccination,” she said.

The mask rule also applies to unseated outdoor gatherings of more than 1,000 people, and masks will be required in public areas all city buildings. That means fans seated outdoors at Phillies and Eagles games won’t need to wear masks, but masks will be required at the Wells Fargo Center.

Businesses that require vaccination will not be able to allow children who are too young to be vaccinated inside.

The rate of new cases has doubled three times in the past month, Bettigole said, and the city currently has a daily case count average of 181.

Bettigole said the decision was also based on situation in other cities, where hospitals are overrun with coronavirus patients. While Philadelphia is nowhere near that dire situation, she said, the city now has more than 100 people hospitalized with COVID-19 for the first time since June.

“This is not the summer any of us imagined,” she said.

Bettigole also warned that more restrictions could be added in the future. if cases continue to rise, noting that the restrictions announced Wednesday “are just a next step.”

Kenney acknowledged that the return to restrictions is frustrating.

“I think it goes without saying that none of us want to be here discussion restrictions and policies needed to stem the spread of COVID-19,” he said.

He also pleaded with residents to get vaccinated.

“Please, just get the vaccine,” Kenney said.

» READ MORE: Philadelphia’s new mask mandate begins at midnight

— Laura McCrystal

One of the largest unions in Philadelphia plans on being “supportive” with officials on a potential vaccine mandate for city employees.

Ernest Garrett, the head of American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees District Council 33, says the conditional OK will also include advocating for religious and medical exemptions for any of its 9,500 municipal workers.

But do other union leaders in the city share Garrett’s viewpoint?

The Philadelphia Federation of Teachers said it supports a vaccine mandate for school employees with limited exemptions. The union representing school bus drivers and other workers — 32BJ SEIU — also said that it was open to a mandate as long as it doesn’t “supersede the rights of labor unions to bargain work conditions.”

Michael Bresnan, president of Local 22 of the International Fire Fighters and Paramedics Union, said Tuesday that the Kenney administration had not discussed a mandate with him and would have to negotiate with the union if it wanted to pursue one.

Philadelphia’s Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 5 has declined to comment on the issue, and AFSCME District Council 47, which represents the city’s white-collar workers, has not responded to requests for comment.

All four of the city’s major municipal unions, representing 22,300 of the city’s 26,800 employees, are currently in negotiations or interest arbitration proceedings with the Kenney administration over new contracts that will determine wages, benefits, and some worker safety rules going forward.

» READ MORE: Philly’s largest union for city workers says it won’t oppose a vaccine mandate

— Sean Collins Walsh and Laura McCrystal

Confronting a middling vaccination rate and a coronavirus case increase that doesn’t show signs of abating, public officials across the region and state unveiled new steps Tuesday to require vaccines or masks in certain settings.

Philadelphia is expected to announce an indoor mask mandate for all businesses — or allow them to go mask-free if they require proof of vaccination for employees and patrons. Gov. Tom Wolf announced Pennsylvania’s first vaccine mandate, ordering health-care workers at state-run facilities to be vaccinated or undergo weekly COVID-19 testing and requiring future hires to be immunized.

Philadelphia City Council became the first branch of city government to require shots for its 190 workers — as well as the lawmakers, all 17 of whom told The Inquirer they are vaccinated ahead of their return this week to in-person hearings. And Mayor Jim Kenney cleared one potential obstacle as he weighs a broader vaccine mandate for all city employees: the largest municipal workers union said it would not oppose one.

More health-care systems and universities, too, firmed up plans: The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia is mandating that staff be vaccinated by Oct. 20, and Thomas Jefferson University has set a deadline of Oct. 29, representatives for each institution said Tuesday.

The steps, amid a growing nationwide wave of vaccine requirements, created a new patchwork of rules that will affect tens of thousands of public workers, students, and residents but still leave Philadelphia and Pennsylvania without any citywide or statewide vaccine mandates.

» READ MORE: As cases rise, so do new rules: Philly adds a mask mandate, Pa. to require vaccination or tests for some workers

— Justine McDaniel, Laura McCrystal, Sean Collins Walsh, and Erin McCarthy

While massive outbreaks in the South are driving the latest surge of COVID-19 cases nationally, infections are also rising sharply in the Northeast.

Delaware has seen the average number of daily COVID-19 cases jump 173% over the past two weeks, according to an Inquirer analysis of data from the New York Times. That’s the fourth-fastest rate in the country, behind Vermont, New Hampshire, and North Dakota.

Delaware is averaging 190 new COVID-19 cases a day over the past week, the highest rate since mid-May. All three of Delaware’s counties — New Castle, Kent, and Sussex — are classified as having “high” rates of transmission, according to the CDC. As a result, Delaware announced Tuesday that masks will be mandated in all schools when classes begin later this month.

Following not far behind is Pennsylvania, which has seen a 161% jump in new COVID-19 cases over the past two weeks. The commonwealth is averaging 1,613 new COVID-19 cases a day, and the test positivity rate was 5.4% last week — indicating more COVID-19 cases aren’t being counted. Eleven Pennsylvania counties are classified by the CDC has having “high” rates of COVID-19 transmission, while 37 counties — including Philadelphia and its suburban counties — are currently experiencing “substantial” spread.

COVID-19 hospitalizations are also on the rise in both Pennsylvania and Delaware, but remain far below peak levels reached during the winter, thanks to vaccination rates that are higher than the national average. COVID-19 deaths also remain low, thanks to vaccination rates.

The United States reported more than 178,000 new COVID-19 cases on Monday and nearly 162,000 cases on Tuesday, the most in a two-day span since the end of January. The country is now averaging over 118,000 new cases a day and rising rapidly driven by massive outbreaks in southern states such as Texas and Florida.

The European Union is considering restricting travel from the United States as “the COVID situation has deteriorated,” an official told the Washington Post.

— Rob Tornoe