COVID: ‘Green Pass’ Holders Allowed Entry Into Few Businesses That Remain

“We recommend visiting the site when fewer users are likely to be on, such as in four or five months.”

Jerusalem, March 4 – The Ministry of Health launched a new initiative in the last several weeks, under which people carrying certification that they have undergone the full immunization regimen against SARS-CoV-2 may enjoy unrestricted admittance to the few operating restaurants, stores, and service boutiques that have not gone belly-up during the prolonged lockdowns of the last year.

Minister of Health Yuli Edelstein held a press conference Thursday morning to provide updates on the government’s handling of the pandemic. He touted the world-leading Israeli vaccination numbers and urged the public to continue seeking the injections so that life can return to pre-COVID normal as soon as possible, and as normal as possible when so many local and small businesses have collapsed while no one was permitted to operate or patronize them.

“The numbers so far have provided significant encouragement,” Edelstein declared. “Obviously the continued downward trend of positive cases and percentage depends in part on our citizens maintaining the strong collective immunization effort. Soon, within months or perhaps even within weeks if the data support it, we can allow a full reopening of the Israeli economy, or at least the few parts of the Israeli economy that have survived.”

Under the Green Pass program, Edelstein explained, Israelis may reduce their adherence to certain restrictions if they display a Ministry-issued document attesting to the fact that they have received both immunization injections and that a week has passed since the second one. “The Green Pass is available as a downloadable QR code graphic for those who enter their information into the ministry website,” he noted. “Yes, it can take days to get it to work properly, because so many users are trying to access the form at the same time, so we recommend visiting the site when fewer users are likely to be on, such as in four or five months.”

Israelis hungry for a return to normal life voiced hope that they could do so before even the businesses that have survived are gone as well. “I need a new pair of shoes,” complained Jerusalem resident Aniha Mor. “I’ve needed a new pair of shoes for months now, but the one place I know that carries anything comfortable for me hasn’t been answering the phone. I don’t know what I’ll do if it closes down for good. I hope it doesn’t get replaced by yet another hair studio, coffee shop, or 24-hour convenience store. But it’s along the stretch of Jaffa Road just west of King George, where I think by law everything has to be a shoe store, so there’s a chance I’ll find something.”

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