Harry Styles' Florida Concert May Have Violated 'Vaccine Passport' Law, Documents Show
Singer Harry Styles, Major League Baseball, and several other institutions are all under investigation in Florida for allegedly violating vaccine passport laws.
The Florida Department of Health released a list of 120 cases "under review" for potential violations of the law after a public request by the Orlando Sentinel in September. The department initially held back the information, but eventually complied after the outlet's attorney reached out.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, a Republican, banned so-called "vaccine passports" in the state via executive order in early April. The move was just one of many the governor has taken to loosen or outright block anti-COVID restrictions, even as Florida was leading the country in new cases. In September, DeSantis signed a law that would fine businesses $5,000 for requiring proof of vaccination for employees, flouting mandates from the Biden administration for businesses with more than 100 workers.
Styles' concert would have been among the more recent violations on the list. The former One Direction member performed at the Amway Center in Orlando on October 7.
Newsweek reached out to Styles' management for a comment on this story but did not hear back before publication.
Among the various government entities and businesses based in Florida mentioned on the list are the Orange County government, the Orange County Convention Center, AdventHealth, the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts, the Orlando Lowndes Shakespeare Center, the House of Blues, the Plaza Live, the Alachua County Public Library, and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement's counterterrorism squad in Jacksonville.
In addition to the Amway Center, a few other sports and entertainment venues are mentioned, including several shows at the iThink Financial Amphitheatre in West Palm Beach and Daily's Place in Jacksonville, a concert venue and hub for All Elite Wrestling.
A few major international companies are also named on the list, including AT&T, Starbucks, and Live Nation, as well as the defense companies Northrop Grumman and Raytheon Technologies. The MLB team Miami Marlins were the only sports team of any kind mentioned.
Disney Cruise Lines, Royal Caribbean and Carnival Cruise Line are all included on the list, but it is unlikely that Florida will be able to level fines against them anytime soon. In August, a judge sided with Norwegian Cruise Line when it challenged DeSantis's ban required vaccine proof, granting an injunction and allowing cruise lines to keep such requirements in place.
Florida was once considered the "epicenter" of the recent resurgence of COVID-19, leading every other state in new cases by a wide margin for most of the summer and consistently breaking daily records in August. More recently, its numbers have declined, with less than 25,000 new cases in the last week. While this number is still concerning, it is nevertheless lower than larger states like California and Texas.
