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With the Delta variant of theCOVID-19virus spreading around the country, the New Orleans Saints are taking precautionary measures seriously — for themselves and their fans.
According toWDSU, the Saints will not offer refunds to fans who show up to their stadium next season without proof of vaccination or a negative 72-hour PCR test. That applies to both fans who purchased single-game tickets and season ticket holders, the latter of which won’t be given a choice to opt-out of the season, the outlet said.
“We’ve received all necessary local and state approvals to host a full stadium of fans and with that in mind, we are not offering a refund or opt-out option this season,” a Saints representative told WDSU.
“We remain optimistic that, with our community’s help and as vaccination rates increase, these restrictions will no longer be necessary as the season progresses,” they continued. “However, if you don’t plan on attending games this season, we’d recommend that you resell your individual game tickets on SeatGeek, which has a strong secondary market for Saints tickets.”
The Saints, who play home games at Louisiana’s Caesars Superdome, did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.
According to theNew York Times, Louisiana has experienced a 17% increase in COVID-19 cases over the last two weeks, with a daily average of 5,043 cases as of Wednesday.
On Wednesday, the Las Vegas Raiders announced fans can enter Allegiant Stadium only if they showedproof of vaccination. However, anyone who hasn’t received a shot can enter as long as they are vaccinated on-site at the stadium.
The Raiders will allow fans to go maskless once inside.
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“Health and safety has always been our number one priority,” said Raiders owner Mark Davis in a statement. “After consultation with [Nevada] Governor Sisolak and other community leaders, this policy ensures that we will be able to operate at full capacity without masks for fully vaccinated fans for the entire season.”
Researchers have found thatfully vaccinated individuals can still become infectedwith the COVID-19 virus.
Breakthrough cases— COVID-19 infections that occur in people who have been fully vaccinated against the virus — are rare, but possible and expected, as the vaccines are not 100% effective in preventing infections. Still, vaccinated people who test positive will likely be asymptomatic or experience a far milder illness than if they were not vaccinated. The majority of deaths from COVID-19 — around 98 to 99% —are in unvaccinated people.
source: people.com
