PITTSBURGH — Allegheny County Executive Rich Fitzgerald said he supports the Pittsburgh Penguins’ push to create special sections for vaccinated fans. He’s hoping other venues around the county follow through with similar ideas.
“It’s the right thing to do, and I applaud the Penguins,” Fitzgerald said at a news conference on Wednesday. “I know we’re considering that and will probably do that with our summer concert series at Hartwood Acres and at South Park.”
Those events are scheduled to start in early June. He believes by that time, everyone in the county will have had access to receive a vaccine. According to the state’s COVID-19 dashboard, there are nearly 400,000 fully vaccinated people in the county.
“They don’t need to be 6 feet apart. They don’t need to be wearing masks if everybody has been vaccinated in an area can be together,” Fitzgerald said.
“I think it’s a little weird. It might go well, but I feel like it won’t make a difference that much,” said sports fan CJ Coakley.
“People who are vaccinated don’t really pose as a threat to others from a COVID-19 perspective,” said infectious disease expert Dr. Amesh Adalja.
Adalja believes it could work, and it could keep people safe.
“What we have seen in other states, in other countries is that you can start to treat people who are vaccinated differently than people who are unvaccinated. You can start to be a little more open about social distancing and masking requirements,” he said.
Adalja said he believes more restrictions will be lifted as spring fades into summer.
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