Just asked D. She said it’s on Lolla’s website that you need to be vaccinated. Her friend went to some big country music concert in the city last weekend and didn’t know he’d have to show a vaccine card but was asked for one at the gate. He had the photo of his on his phone. The person he was with is not vaccinated but got a friend to text her a photo of HER vaccine card and she used that to get in! They didn’t check the card versus her ID.
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Good to hear at Lolla! Not so good about the country music festival.
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Lolla’s website said you need a vaccine card or negative test within the past 72 hours to attend…whether or not they will carefully check those (match names)…who knows?
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I had thought I remembered they announced you needed to be vaccinated or show a negative test when they announced Lolla is happening.
My kids and all their friends are vaccinated, but that event always makes me nervous. I can’t tell you how many times I remind them never to drink out of any water bottle that is not their own, not to share anything etc. My one daughter just had mono this Spring so I’m sure it will not be an issue, but nonetheless I will nag anyway. This is also one of those times I will drive or pick them up from the train station because while mine are really not big drinkers, I do know they drink some but they have friends that are really heavy drinkers and if I’m not going to pick them up, then I sure as hell don’t want to trust them getting in a car with someone or driving home. Maybe they can take an Uber too I guess. Ugh I hate that event.
@momofboiler1 I agree. Superspreader event. A negative covid test means nothing these days. You can be negative for 12 days before the virus shows up. But that’s going to be another thing I warn mine about and they’ll listen or they won’t. Fortunately, they are at least not the kind that mash with people or are all over people. But that doesn’t necessarily mean much with this variant floating either.
Yeah, this is a problem. I wonder with the thousands of people at Lolla and other events, how they will really be able to take the time to check. I think there is only one entrance and people are not so patient. They need to tie it into their wristbands and check beforehand. But even then, the wristband doesn’t show an ID but if they had a machine like cruise ships had that you scan the wristband and your picture comes up then bam you can get in very quickly.
shouldn’t we have a new thread for AY 21/22?
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If you are unvaccinated, a single test to determine if you are “safe” from being a spreader is not very effective, unless you quarantine or be extra careful for some days before the test until the event you are testing for.
However, what may mitigate against spreading at Lollapalooza is that (a) it is outdoors, (b) many people are vaccinated, (c) the Delta variant is still resisted by vaccination, and (d) even a weak vaccination “requirement” may still deter some unvaccinated people (even a small effort to “cheat” may be too much for some).
Also, if the spreading occurs among unvaccinated people while vaccinated people largely remain safe, then we can just look at it as personal choices having personal consequences (unlike before vaccines were available, when personal choices had consequences for everyone else).
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Agree. Chicago itself is just over 50% vaccinated, but many of the people that come to Lolla are not from Chicago proper. They’re from the suburbs, etc. But a suburb like DuPage has something like 58% vaccinated. Cook and Lake are just over 50%. But these numbers are much higher than other parts of the state. It’s obvious that the variant is picking people off in Missouri. If that can’t change people’s minds then not sure anything will.
My mother has stage 4 cancer, even vaccinated her Dr has told her to double mask out of the house when she can. My biggest concern is my kids going to an event like that, getting a break through case, and then giving it to my mom as well with a breakthrough case. They’ll for sure be seeing her soon after since they both leave for school within the week, but as you said, being outside is key, etc so we’re going to have to be extra cautious.
I hate crowds like this, but at the same time when I was younger we used to love to go to the crowded things like Taste of Chicago, concerts in Grant Park, other crazy concerts, the fireworks down there on the 3rd, etc. So I guess this is no different.
I am glad both of my kids’ schools are requiring the vaccine.
The college kids I know do care about COVD - maybe because they want a better college experience. But my mid-twenties nephew, who is vaccinated, said months ago that his generation didn’t care about COVID - they were all traveling, having weddings etc. pre-vaccine.
I wish all the “kids” did care - their generation will be paying for this for decades.
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I think a lot of schools are waiting for the FDA full approval. I’ve been hearing rumblings that this is going to be happening in the next couple of weeks. If true, then I think the next move after that is we will start to see a lot more mandates come down, both in schools, businesses and many other places.
I wish everyone cared about being vaccinated, not just one generation or another or one political party. This should not be political. There is so much misinformation out there I am amazed at what people believe to be true. Why people can honestly rationalize that it won’t happen to them when almost all the people hospitalized and dying and people who are having breakthrough cases are not getting sick. The vaccine is saving them from such. But at the end of the day, those people are making their choices to not get vaccinated. Hopefully the ones who can’t get vaccinated are able to take as many precautions as possible so that they can feel safe.
Local efforts though are definitely now at work. For the first time ever, my daughter’s condo HOA in Texas sent a “newsletter” and it was really only a PSA about getting the vaccine and what is going on in Austin and what phase they’re in and the how cases are increasing like crazy. Good for them for taking the liberty to do what they can do since the school’s hands are tied from doing much else this year.
Let’s hope schools can open and stay open and we don’t have a repeat of Spring 2020. I do think we’re in a better place now with regards to knowing what works (the vaccine!) and schools will figure out what to do.
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I think many people who already had the virus and had very mild or no symptoms are also in the group of people who are not getting vaccinated. They are a large group and should be protected by natural immunity. They should be considered when we are looking at number of people vaccinated or have natural immunity.
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@Luckyjade2024 - i think you are right. i just read on NPR this " Only about 42 percent of people 18 to 24 have gotten fully vaccinated, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention."
i am so confused by what many large schools will do about it all. Our midwest state hasn’t required the vaccine yet for any state schools; nor has my son’s large U OOS. The parents are confused by guidelines, as there will be quarantining for the exposed unvaxed and those who test positive; – yet at this point no online classes or remote options for those in quarantine.
my own gen Z kid sort of reacted with a shrug when i mentioned to him to upload his vax card so he has proof and doesn’t get forced into quarantine, like the “meh” kids from the article above.
for those colleges requiring the vax, how are they handling positives and quarantining and classes for those with positive tests?
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And will the vaccinated who test positive also have to quarantine? They’d obviously have to be symptomatic to get tested, but it looks like the recommendation is for them to quarantine as well.
ETA Just checked policy at my son’s school. There is limited quarantine space. Any unvaxxed are responsible for quarantining themselves off campus if there is no space on campus. Vaccinated students who test positive do not have to quarantine.
ETA2 Just checked CDC and it seems they recommend if you are vaccinated and test positive and are symptomatic you should quarantine. If asymptomatic you do not have to.
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confusing, right!?
especially if you are vaxed but symptomatic. 
If we could make it through last year, this year should be easier. I can’t imagine it being that hard ever again.
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Recommendation is still to get vaccinated regardless of whether you have had covid or not. While having covid provides some antibodies there is research that shows over time the level of antibodies decreases and for some people the antibodies are gone within only a few months. My daughter had a sorority sister who had covid in March 2020 and by August of 2020 showed 0 antibodies. Thus, anyone who has had covid absolutely should be vaccinated and at that point shoud only then be counted. And yes, I’m full aware of older studies showing that people with antibodies show some greater level of immunity, however, those are older and further research has shown the greatest benefit is actually if they are vaccinated even after having covid.
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My D’s school (W&M) won’t absolutely require vaccines util full FDA approval but are urging vaccination about as strongly as they can. Vaccinated students must upload the record to the school (were already required to do so by now). The school has recently reported that the vast majority of students, staff and faculty are already vaccinated. Vaccinated students will able to go about life pretty much the same as Pre-
Covid (masks as personal choice) but unvaccinated will be expected to mask indoors. Vaccinated students won’t be required to test, but unvaccinated will test before coming to campus and test weekly. The university will no longer provide dorms for quarantining students or for those who test positive…these students must leave campus through their own planning/expense. If that’s not incentive to vaccinate, I don’t know what is…
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Tufts is requiring Vax. All students regardless of Vax will be tested weekly and need to mask indoors. They will still have isolation housing etc. They are allowing for religious and medical exemption but it seems vast majority have gotten the vaccine. (International must quarantine and if they can’t get Vax they can do so upon arrival)
One more thing. Tufts is treating everyone equally regardless of vaccine status.
The following is from Tufts:
It would be a violation of the university’s values and federal law to publicly identify unvaccinated individuals. Such medical information is confidential and protected. All individuals on campus should wear masks while indoors in community settings, including classrooms, studios, laboratories, libraries, dining facilities (when not actually eating), lounges, common rooms, and hallways. Unvaccinated individuals are recommended to wear masks and practice social distancing as much as possible when in public spaces.
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I guess W&M is somehow getting around that by saying that mask-wearing is still welcomed and encouraged for everyone (vaccinated or not) just not required for vaccinated students. The school says, therefore, no assumption should be made about vaccination status wrt mask-wearing. Don’t know how long this will last…if the Delta Variant becomes more prevalent and dangerous I wouldn’t be surprised if they go back to masking and testing for everyone. Just hope it doesn’t come to that. Also, if others schools are saying that vaccinatiing Is mandatory except for medical/religious exemptions, that’s pretty much where W&M stands. I took the exemptions as meaning not 100% mandatory.
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As a practical matter, vaccinated people who have no COVID-19 symptoms are likely to assume that they are not infected at all, even after close contact with someone known to have COVID-19, so they are unlikely to get tested.