New York City to require proof of vaccination for these indoor activities

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio announced Tuesday that city residents will have to show proof that they’ve received a COVID-19 vaccination before gaining entry into restaurants, gyms, entertainment centers and other venues.

The mandate is believed to be the first of its kind in the U.S. and similar to those implemented in France and Italy.

San Francisco Mayor London Breed said last week that city officials were exploring vaccine mandates in response to a renewed increase in COVID-19 cases. San Francisco is already requiring its roughly 35,000 city employees to get vaccinated, once a vaccine receives full approval from the Food and Drug Administration.

Bars and restaurants across the Bay Area have already begun asking patrons to show their vaccine cards before entering, but the practice is voluntary on the part of business.

New York City’s mandate will kick in later this month and enforcement will begin in mid-September.

The requirement represented the latest push on de Blasio’s part to get more people vaccinated amid a renewed COVID-19 surge driven by the highly contagious delta variant of the coronavirus.

“By fighting the delta variant we will continue our recovery and we will ultimately beat COVID,” de Blasio said at a news conference. He framed the requirement as a “key” that would unlock the city’s offerings to vaccinated people.

De Blasio has not, however, reinstated indoor mask mandates as the Bay Area and numerous other cities have done, The New York Times reported, choosing instead to pour resources into increasing vaccination rates.

Public health officials in seven Bay Area counties announced Monday that residents would again be requried to wear masks indoors, regardless of their vaccination status.

Dominic Fracassa is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: dfracassa@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @dominicfracassa