New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said Thursday that he is aiming to have businesses in his city fully reopened by July 1 as more and more New Yorkers receive the COVID-19 vaccine.
Speaking with Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski on “Morning Joe,” de Blasio explained that restaurants, bars, theaters and other businesses would have their capacity restrictions lifted by July 1 as the city prepares for tourism over the summer season.
“We said a month or so ago, it was the variants versus the vaccination, what was going to win, which one was going to win the race. Vaccination is winning this race … 6.3 million vaccinations, COVID is plummeting,” said the mayor, according to Axios.
“This is going to be the summer of New York City. You’re going to see amazing activities, cultural activities coming back. I think people are going to flock to New York City, because they want to live again,” he continued.
His efforts to reopen the city come as more than 6 million vaccinations have been administered there, blunting its COVID-19 case and death rates. The city is now seeing its test positivity rate, hospitalization and death rates all decrease, according to health officials’ COVID-19 dashboard.
“What we’re seeing is, people have gotten vaccinated in extraordinary numbers,” de Blasio added. “We’re doing a lot to reach people at the grassroots.”
Health experts have pointed to vaccination rates as the main reason delaying the full reopening of public life in America, as authorities have hoped individual communities can reach at least 80 percent herd immunity to the virus through vaccinations.