Proving COVID vaccination status starts Monday in Chicago, Cook County at many businesses


By |

Starting Monday, Jan. 3, proof of vaccination will be required for anyone 5 years or older to frequent many businesses in Chicago or suburban Cook County.

Proof of vaccination will be required for indoor dining, indoor fitness and indoor entertainment, as well as recreation venues where food or beverages are served.

Under the city’s Public Health Order 2021-2, the following rules apply to public indoor places in Chicago:  

  • Indoor Dining: Establishments where food or beverages are served, including, but not limited to, restaurants, bars, fast food establishments, coffee shops, tasting rooms, cafeterias, food courts, dining areas of grocery stores, breweries, wineries, distilleries, banquet halls, and hotel ballrooms; and 
  • Indoor Fitness: Gyms and fitness venues, including, but not limited to, gyms, recreation facilities, fitness centers, yoga, Pilates, cycling, barre, and dance studios, hotel gyms, boxing and kickboxing gyms, fitness boot camps, and other facilities used for conducting indoor group fitness classes; and 
  • Indoor entertainment and recreation venues where food or beverages are served: Including, but not limited to, movie theaters, music and concert venues, live performance venues, adult entertainment venues, commercial event and party venues, sports arenas, performing arts theaters, bowling alleys, arcades, card rooms, family entertainment centers, play areas, pool and billiard halls, and other recreational game centers.

All those 16 and older will need to show a valid photo ID and a photocopy of their vaccination card, a digital record or printed record. More information about the city’s order may be found here.

The Cook County Department of Public Health issued a similar mitigation order for its suburban Cook County jurisdiction. Businesses must display signs at every entrance and prominently within their facility, and they must develop a written protocol with details for how they will check vaccine status and how they will enforce this order.

For more information and resources regarding county’s order 2021-11, click here

Comments are closed.