DEVELOPING Person on fire outside Trump's hush money trial rushed away on a stretcher
A person who was on fire in a park outside the New York courthouse where Donald Trump’s hush money trial is taking place has been rushed away on a stretcher.
David Screech had already selected his seats and put in his credit card information for "Springsteen on Broadway" tickets when he noticed the COVID-19 vaccine requirements: his two doses of Oxford-AstraZeneca wouldn't be enough for admission.
Screech, the mayor of View Royal, B.C., and a Springsteen fan of 40 years, received his second AstraZeneca dose last week, but the Jujamcyn Theaters' website said it would only allow guests "fully vaccinated with an FDA-approved vaccine" -- Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna or Johnson & Johnson -- to see the show.
The New York venue held firm when Screech contacted them directly to ask about the requirement, turning his anticipation into disappointment. While he's "very grateful" to have two doses of an effective vaccine, Screech said he had some reservations about AstraZeneca, and the Broadway snub "certainly added to that."
"Obviously our health is far more important than being able to go to shows or concerts. But the flip side of that is, shows and concerts have been a major part of my life," Screech said.
"And the idea of not being able to go to them for the foreseeable future because of possibly getting the wrong vaccine is a little disappointing."
"Springsteen on Broadway" isn't the only New York City attraction holding guests to strict vaccination rules.
Live tapings of TV shows including "Saturday Night Live" and "The Late Show with Stephen Colbert" also snub AstraZeneca doses in rules listed on their websites, which say they're acting "at the direction of New York State."
The New York Islanders, currently in an NHL playoff series against the Tampa Bay Lightning, don't appear to have the same restrictions. While the team's website says fans need proof of vaccination "per New York State guidelines," the arena also has "non-vaccinated sections."
The offices of New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, the New York State Department of Health and the Jujamcyn Theaters did not immediately return requests for comment.
Dr. Zain Chagla, an infectious disease physician in Hamilton, wasn't surprised to see institutions begin enacting vaccine passports. But blocking AstraZeneca recipients from a Springsteen show seemed particularly cruel.
"If there's something more painful you can do to Generation X, this is it," Chagla said with a laugh.
Potential vaccine requirements for travellers could get even trickier if other countries begin forming rules based on their own authorized jabs, Chagla said.
A sense of vaccine nationalism could lead some to insist their authorized products are "the gold standard," he added, noting that Johnson & Johnson, which was created with the same viral-vector technology as AstraZeneca, was slightly less effective in clinical trials.
"This is just a very arbitrary line in the sand, based on what the FDA approved, (without) recognizing that AstraZeneca is approved by many other health-care organizations around the world," Chagla said.
"Private industries have the right to do what they want but at the same time we need to have larger discussions around what's considered a fully immunized person, and with which vaccines."
Canada and the United States extended restrictions on non-essential travel on Friday, keeping the border between the countries closed until at least July 21.
Chagla expects more U.S. states to adopt FDA-approved vaccine requirements, which could bring more uncertainty and insult to AstraZeneca recipients planning to travel south once the border re-opens. Roughly two millions Canadians have received an AstraZeneca shot.
The websites of some tourist attractions in California and Florida, and ones in border cities including Detroit and Seattle, did not outline specific immunization rules as of Friday.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said that while potential stipulations in countries that don't recognize the "full suite of vaccines" will be an issue, Canada is "engaged in discussions with Americans and with partners around the world to ensure that people who are protected from COVID-19 are able to travel."
Chagla called for world leaders to establish a "benchmark" of potential vaccine requirements and give people confidence in their jab.
"You really want people to feel they're making the right decision, they're not going to be discriminated against, and they'll have access to everything a vaccinated person should," he said.
Andria Bianchi, a bioethicist and assistant professor at the University of Toronto's school of public health, wondered about the justification for the Broadway show's vaccine rule.
If the goal is to ensure no one with COVID-19 enters the building, relying strictly on FDA-authorized vaccine passports isn't the only way to achieve that.
"I hope that when any place is developing policies or putting restrictions in place that they're very well-thought out and all possible options are explored," Bianchi said.
"I imagine there's going to be a lot of AstraZeneca recipients frustrated and maybe feeling a sense of injustice."
Screech said he hopes the "Springsteen on Broadway" rule will change to reflect that AstraZeneca provides solid protection against COVID-19.
"But there's disappointment for sure, and a bit of worry about what it means for (other) U.S. venues in the future."
This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 18, 2021
A person who was on fire in a park outside the New York courthouse where Donald Trump’s hush money trial is taking place has been rushed away on a stretcher.
Soulful gospel artist Mandisa, a Grammy-winning singer who got her start as a contestant on 'American Idol' in 2006, has died, according to a statement on her verified social media. She was 47.
The Senate legal affairs committee has rejected a motion calling for members to take a $50,000 field trip to the African Lion Safari in southern Ontario to see the zoo's elephant exhibit.
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency is encouraging veterinarians to keep an eye out for signs of avian influenza in dairy cattle following recent discoveries of cases of the disease in U.S. cow herds.
Scottish comedian Samantha Hannah was working on a comedy show about finding a husband when Toby Hunter came into her life. What happened next surprised them both.
Group of Seven foreign ministers warned of new sanctions against Iran on Friday for its drone and missile attack on Israel, and urged both sides to avoid an escalation of the conflict.
A Manitoba woman thought she found a miracle natural supplement, but said a hidden ingredient wreaked havoc on her health.
Hospital chaplain J.S. Park opens up about death, grief and hearing thousands of last words, and shares his advice for the living.
A family trip took a frightening turn for Christopher Won when he was diagnosed with flesh-eating disease while in Hong Kong and now, after weeks of treatment overseas, the Vancouver firefighter is back home recovering.
At 6'8" and 350 pounds, there is nothing typical about UBC offensive lineman Giovanni Manu, who was born in Tonga and went to high school in Pitt Meadows.
Kevin the cat has been reunited with his family after enduring a harrowing three-day ordeal while lost at Toronto Pearson International Airport earlier this week.
Molly Knight, a grade four student in Nova Scotia, noticed her school library did not have many books on female athletes, so she started her own book drive in hopes of changing that.
Almost 7,000 bars of pure gold were stolen from Pearson International Airport exactly one year ago during an elaborate heist, but so far only a tiny fraction of that stolen loot has been found.
When Les Robertson was walking home from the gym in North Vancouver's Lower Lonsdale neighbourhood three weeks ago, he did a double take. Standing near a burrow it had dug in a vacant lot near East 1st Street and St. Georges Avenue was a yellow-bellied marmot.
A moulting seal who was relocated after drawing daily crowds of onlookers in Greater Victoria has made a surprise return, after what officials described as an 'astonishing' six-day journey.
Just steps from Parliament Hill is a barber shop that for the last 100 years has catered to everyone from prime ministers to tourists.
A high score on a Foo Fighters pinball machine has Edmonton player Dave Formenti on a high.
A compound used to treat sour gas that's been linked to fertility issues in cattle has been found throughout groundwater in the Prairies, according to a new study.