August 23, 2021
A Message From The Supervisor:
Exciting news! Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine was granted full approval today by the Food and Drug Administration. This is an important step in our City’s recovery. Believe me, I understand everyone’s pain when it comes to COVID-19; however, now is not the time for us to throw our hands up. We must continue to encourage our unvaccinated friends and family members to get vaccinated. The Delta variant is far more serious than last year’s strain of COVID-19 so I encourage all my constituents to wear your mask and practice social distancing when possible. For more information regarding the FDA approval, please click HERE.
Secondly, this Wednesday, August 25, 2021 at 5:30pm, the Department of Homelessness and Supportive Housing will be hosting a neighborhood and community stakeholder meeting regarding the City’s proposed acquisition of the Mission Inn Hotel located at 5630 Mission Street. The proposed purchase and conversion of the 52 units at the Mission Inn Hotel are part of Mayor Breed’s historic plan announced in July 2020 to create 4,500 units of Permanent Supportive Housing. This includes acquiring or leasing 1,500 new units of Permanent Supportive Housing in the next two years, the largest one-time expansion in the City in the past 20 years. I have worked collaboratively with Mayor Breed and HSH to prioritize purchasing hotels and motels for conversion to supportive housing around our city. To ensure the community was properly noticed of this virtual meeting, I had my staff out all last week putting flyers on each house in surrounding neighborhoods. If you are interested in attending this community meeting, click HERE to register for the zoom ahead of the meeting.
Lastly, Summer for San Francisco Unified School District is officially over. District 11 schools have successfully completed their first week of school. It is good to see children once again attending school in person, enjoying their time with friends and interfacing with teachers. I know parents are concerned about possible exposure to COVID-19. The school district has created a COVID-19 Frequently Asked Questions tab on their website to address these concerns. To learn more about the district’s precaution, please visit: https://www.sfusd.edu/covid-19-response-updates-and-resources/covid-19-frequently-asked-questions-faqs
I would like to remind everyone that the Board of Supervisors is currently on August recess. Our office remains accessible to the public through telephone, email, virtual meeting or in person via appointment. We are available by email: safaistaff@sfgov.org or by phone 415-554-6976 (leave a message and we will call you back). You can also check for updates on my Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. Stay safe and healthy.
Please note - if you miss my weekly newsletter, you may find it later on the Board of Supervisor’s website. Click HERE to read past newsletters.
Sincerely,
Supervisor Ahsha Safai
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Updates to San Francisco's Response to COVID-19
- Proof of full vaccination required for patrons at some businesses and all large indoor events began on August 20, 2021. The City is doing this for public safety, and to keep our businesses OPEN. Where does this apply?
- In indoor settings where food or drink is served, like bars, restaurants, clubs, movie theaters;
- Fitness establishments, including gyms and yoga studios;
- Large indoor events (1,000-4,999 people), regardless of whether food or drink is served. Events with 5,000 or more people are considered “mega-events” and are required to check for proof of full vaccination as well.
- Patrons will be required to show vaccination status beginning, Aug. 20 and employees by Oct. 13 to give time to meet the requirements of their employment.
- For more information and helpful resources, please click this link.
- Read the full press release here.
- NEW required signage businesses must post at public entrances and in employee-facing areas. This new required sign is in English, Spanish, Cantonese and Filipino, and available in sizes 8.5x11 and 11x17. Visit the SF COVID-19 Best Practices & Guidance Page for additional information and resources.
- San Francisco now offers a third dose of Pfizer or Moderna vaccines to immunocompromised people.
- On Wednesday, August 18, SFDPH began offering a third dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna COVID-19 mRNA vaccines to individuals who meet specific criteria for immunocompromised health conditions, such as active cancer treatment, organ transplant, advanced HIV infection, and others.
- More information may be found in the new health order and the press release.
- New Testing Site Opens in SOMA.
- On Monday, August 16, Mayor London Breed and SFDPH announced the opening of a high-volume testing site for COVID-19 at 7th and Brannan Streets in the South of Market neighborhood.
- The site opened on August 18 with the capacity to administer 500 tests per day from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., seven days a week by appointment only. Drive-thru and walk-up services are available, and test results will be ready within 24 to 48 hours.
- Read the full press release here.
- COVID vaccine event in the Tenderloin focused on serving Latino families to support a safe return to school.
- A drop-in vaccine event will be held on Saturday, August 21 from noon to 3:00 p.m. at 246 Eddy Street (at Jones) in partnership with, UCSF, University of San Francisco School of Nursing and Health Professions (USF SONHP), SFUSD and community service providers.
- Both Pfizer and Johnson & Johnson will be available, administered free of charge by bilingual (Spanish/English) staff, and appointments for second doses will be scheduled on site.
- For more information visit https://sf.gov/covid-19-vaccine-san-francisco
Schools Directive, Guidance, and Quick Guide for Schools
Updated schools directive:
- Schools are strongly urged to require all staff to be fully vaccinated.
- For all staff that are not fully vaccinated, they will be required to undergo twice weekly antigen or once weekly PCR testing.
Updated schools guidance:
- School-based personnel who are not fully vaccinated for COVID-19 must be tested once a week by PCR, or twice a week by antigen testing.
- Adults must wear face masks indoors, even when students are not present.
Quick Guide for Suspected or Confirmed COVID-19 for Schools, Childcares, and Programs for Children and Youth
- Specified that most outdoor exposures are not considered close contacts regardless of masking status.
- Updated definition of close contacts
- Quarantine guidance updated to include a modified quarantine for in-school activity
- Updated testing recommendations for close contacts
- Added testing recommendations for close contacts who are vaccinated
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Transit Month September 2021
Join San Francisco Transit Riders for Transit Month, September 1-30! Sign up for the Ride Contest to win fabulous prizes - each entry is eligible for our raffle, and prizes will be awarded for great transit photos, great transit stories, and folks with the most rides.
September 1: We’ll be kicking off the month with Transit Outreach Hubs around the city - stop by for transit goodies and share your transit pictures online.
September 8: Riders and city leaders will meet up at locations around the city to ride Muni together to City Hall - where we’ll hold our Transit Month Rally starting at 8:45 AM!
October 1: We’ll hold an outdoor edition of our Rider First Awards party. Join us in honoring people who have made a positive difference for transit riders this year - and nominate your own transit hero!
Together, let’s celebrate the central role public transit plays in San Francisco’s recovery, and in our lives every day. More information at transitmonth.org.
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Updated Health Order - Info and Resources for Businesses
Starting last week, covered businesses will require all patrons age 12 and older to show proof that they are Fully Vaccinated before entering any indoor portion of a facility, subject only to exceptions found in the Health Order and any applicable requirements of federal, state, or local laws requiring accommodation. Employees will be required to meet these requirements by October 13, 2021.
- The new requirements apply to certain high-contact indoor sectors such as those that serve food or drink like bars, restaurants, clubs, movie theaters, gyms, other fitness establishments, and large indoor events (1,000-4,999 people). (The state already requires proof of full vaccination status for indoor mega-events, defined as 5,000+ people.)
- Health care workers are included and San Francisco is closing certain exemptions in the state health order to require vaccinations for all health care workers at adult day centers, residential care facilities, dentists, home health aides, and pharmacists.
- This does not include individuals ordering or picking up food or drink to go.
REQUIRED SIGNS
There is newly required signage that businesses must post at public entrances and in employee-facing areas. They combine the signage for indoor masking with the new vaccination requirement, in multiple languages.
Download and print signage:
If you're unable to print your signs, you can pick them up at City Hall at the Goodlett and Grove Street entrances. Contact Paul Lupino at paul.lupino@sfgov.org for questions about the signs.
PROOF OF FULL VACCINATION
Covered Businesses MAY NOT accept a written self-attestation of vaccination as proof.
The following are the ONLY acceptable proof of Full Vaccination:
- the CDC vaccination card, which includes name of person vaccinated, type of vaccine provided, and date last dose administered, or similar documentation issued by another foreign governmental jurisdiction;
- a photo or copy of a vaccination card as a separate document;
- a photo of a vaccination card stored on a phone or electronic device;
- documentation of vaccination from a healthcare provider; or
- a personal digital COVID-19 vaccine record issued by the State of California and available by going to myvaccinerecord.cdph.ca.gov or similar documentation issued by another state, local, or foreign governmental jurisdiction, or by an approved private company (view a list of approved companies offering digital vaccine cards).
Coming Soon: Storefront Vandalism Relief Grant
The Office of Economic and Workforce Development is expecting to launch applications for the Storefront Vandalism Relief Grant at the end of August 2021. In the interim, please visit the webpage which includes details on how businesses should prepare in order to apply in the amount of $1,000 or $2,000 to go towards storefront vandalism-related damages. Incidents are retroactive to January 1, 2021. There is also a registration link which allows small businesses to send questions, receive updates, and be notified when the program launches. Click HERE for the website. |
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