Andrew Cuomo Asks New York Businesses to Require Vaccines to Avoid 'Worst Case Scenario'

To prevent a "worst case scenario" where a mutation of the new coronavirus evades vaccines, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo is asking businesses to only serve people who are vaccinated.

Nearly 60 percent of New York's population are fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and more than 70 percent have had at least one shot. While Cuomo championed the state's ability to get people vaccinated, he said the Delta variant's increased transmissibility means the state could see millions of new cases and a return to the beginning of last year.

"Worst case scenario, a large number of unvaccinated get sick and even worse than that, the Delta variant mutates to a vaccine resistant virus and now we're right back to where we started," Cuomo said on Monday. "Everybody has to get vaccinated again and you have to come up with a vaccine for this new mutation."

The governor acknowledged that it's impossible to fully predict how bad the outbreak could get. However, he said it's possible that COVID cases could rise as high as 5.37 million if 75 percent of the state's unvaccinated population gets sick.

Cuomo stressed the need to incentivize hesitant New Yorkers to get vaccinated against COVID-19 and backed the Biden Administration's offer to give $100 to anyone who gets inoculated. He also asked private businesses to move to a vaccinated-only admission business model.

The governor acknowledged concerns businesses may have that closing their doors to people who are not vaccinated could hurt their business. He denied that would be the case, though, calling the shift in patrons in the business' "best interest." Cuomo also noted that Radio City Music Hall sold out shows to a vaccinated-only audience and sporting events have had predominately vaccinated stands.

Cuomo also pushed hospitals, schools and nursing homes to require their employees be vaccinated against COVID-19. Some hospitals have already made the COVID-19 vaccine a condition of employment and state employees in New York must be vaccinated, as well.

On Monday, he announced all MTA employees and New York employees with the Port Authority, which spans both New York and New Jersey, must be vaccinated or undergo weekly COVID-19 testing. Set to begin on Labor Day, Cuomo said there well be additional vaccine and testing sites so it "won't be a hardship" on the employees.

The Delta variant is the driving force behind the new vaccination requirements and Cuomo said the infection rate among unvaccinated New Yorkers is more than four times higher than with those who are vaccinated. Those who have been inoculated against COVID-19 are also being hospitalized six times less than those who don't have protection.

"Everybody has to get vaccinated," Cuomo said.