The NBA will relax health protocols for people who are fully vaccinated. The changes will include fewer coronavirus tests, removal of quarantine requirements after contact tracing, and being able to go to restaurants.
Only one team – the New Orleans Pelicans – has publicly acknowledged that it began a vaccination process, doing it last weekend, after the Louisiana state rules changed, with which they could begin the administration of the vaccine to players, coaches and personal. No team will be considered fully vaccinated until two weeks after they receive the last dose.
Once that happens, the rules for these individuals will change, the NBA said in a memo it sent Thursday that was obtained by the Associated Press.
During the All-Star Game, Commissioner Adam Silver indicated that there would be changes for those who wish to get vaccinated.
“Right now we operate under a protocol that we call quarantine, in which players basically go from their homes to the arenas,” Silver said. “Once they are vaccinated, they will be able to do more in their communities.”
Contact tracing will be an aspect that will be modified with the new rules. Getting singled out for contact tracing has created problems for many players this season.
A benefit for those who are vaccinated, the league said, will include being able to receive visits from family and friends at home without the need to undergo a test; to be able to have visitors in hotels and on trips; eat in restaurants in your city and visit; and being able to travel to the team’s facilities with other people who have been fully vaccinated.
When a team has 85% of its staff vaccinated, those individuals who received the vaccine will not have to wear masks in the practice facilities.
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