Letters to the Editor: Don’t make a reckless move on vaccine checks, City Council

To the editor: I read with great concern that the Los Angeles City Council recently came within one vote of rolling back the vaccination verification requirement for crowded indoor spaces, based on the current lull in the pandemic.

The pandemic continues with serious surges that are sickening and killing people in China and Europe. New variants and subvariants continue to emerge in areas where the virus infects more people, and millions around the world remain vulnerable and unvaccinated.

The City Council should follow the recommendations of our public health leaders, based as they are on virologic, demographic and scientific data. These experts have a track record of success protecting the people of Los Angeles from epidemics, infectious diseases, toxic substances and water- and food-borne illness.

Los Angeles could not have grown or prospered without vigilant and effective public health measures. It would be tragic for the City Council to heed the willfully ignorant fringe, which sees good public health leadership as tyrannical and evil.

Brian Johnston, MD, Culver City