This Columbus restaurant will require proof of COVID vaccine to dine inside
One Columbus restaurant is now requiring its customers to show proof of COVID vaccination to enter.
Spices Caribbean Restaurant & Bar, 4022 University Ave., has announced that effective Monday, all customers must show proof of vaccination for entry.
“There was no other way for us to come up with any reasonable way to fight this other than the vaccine, as far as keeping our customers safe and employees,” owner Zeall Augustus told the Ledger-Enquirer. “And once one of our employees comes down with this sickness, we’ve got to close anyway. And we’d hate to find out a customer got infected from coming here.”
Augustus said the restaurant’s indoor space is small, so he’d already installed an air purifier system.
“I did the best thing I could do,” Augustus said. “And the vaccine is the next best thing.”
To enter the business, Augustus said customers must show their vaccination card that denotes they’ve received the first shot.
“At least the first shot,” he said. “Just show the card, and pretty much that’s it.”
Augustus couldn’t provide a timeframe for how long the vaccine requirement will last. He said he has non-vaccinated friends who contracted COVID-19 who are currently “going through hell.”
“I mean, (the vaccine is) the only thing we’ve got fighting this thing right now,” Augustus said.
The restaurant is also hiring for all positions, according to a Facebook post, including cooks, servers and bartenders. Applicants must be vaccinated against the coronavirus, according to the post.
The restaurant was established in 2004, according to its Facebook page, and offers a full restaurant and bar.
Growing concern over the spread of the COVID-19 delta variant has prompted a handful of bars and other businesses across the U.S. to ask customers for proof of vaccination.
A “No Vax, No Service” sign now plasters the front door at Argosy in East Atlanta Village in Atlanta, and reaction from the community has been strong. Bar owners said the feedback has ranged from words of encouragement to death threats posted on social media, WAGA reported.
Los Angeles pub Bar Henry said it made the decision “for the continued safety of our guests and staff,” according to an Instagram post.
COVID-19 vaccines are touted as the best way to protect people from getting seriously ill with the virus and can stave off extended hospital stays and death, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. However, no vaccine is 100% effective and, though rare, fully vaccinated people can still contract COVID-19.
Asymptomatic cases are also possible, meaning there’s a small chance vaccinated people can spread the virus, too.
Is it a HIPAA violation to ask someone about their COVID vaccine status?
As the United States faces the threat of the delta coronavirus variant, people are being asked to reveal whether they’ve been vaccinated against COVID-19 — leading many to question what that means for medical privacy.
Some patient information is required to be protected under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), a 1996 rule that is designed for businesses in the medical field.
For that reason, many legal experts say someone asking about your vaccination status typically doesn’t violate HIPAA. Instead, it’s a personal choice to reveal if you’ve gotten your shot, news outlets reported.
“HIPAA does not prevent anyone from asking anything,” Alan Meisel, a University of Pittsburgh professor, told the Associated Press. “What it does is prohibit certain health care entities from revealing certain health information about patients.”
HIPPA’s privacy rule was created to “assure that individuals’ health information is properly protected while allowing the flow of health information needed to provide and promote high quality health care and to protect the public’s health and well being.” It applies to businesses that are related to the health care field, including hospitals and insurance companies.
“Because the average business is not a covered entity or a business associate of a covered entity within the meaning of HIPAA, the statute does not prohibit them asking them about vaccination status,” Glenn Cohen of Harvard Law School told TEGNA in May.
This story was originally published August 9, 2021 at 4:14 PM.
