SAN FRANCISCO—The American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO) has announced that it expects to holds its Annual Meeting as scheduled in November, and that it will require all in-person attendees at the meeting venue in New Orleans to show proof of a COVID-19 vaccination. The organization noted in its statement earlier this month that it is “committed to the health and well-being of our meeting attendees, exhibitors, staff and meeting contractors.” The AAO 2021 meeting is scheduled to run from Friday, Nov. 12, until Monday, Nov. 15, at the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center in New Orleans.

AAO added, “The Academy Board of Trustees has determined that proof of COVID-19 vaccination will be required for all registrants attending the Academy’s annual meeting in New Orleans.”

Every AAO 2021 attendee, all Academy staff, exhibitors and guests will be required to show proof of vaccination before being allowed to enter the convention center. Prior to arriving on site, attendees will be asked to provide proof that they are fully vaccinated with a vaccine approved for emergency use by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) or the World Health Organization (WHO), the announcement noted.

The Academy said it will work with a third-party vendor to manage this process. Instructions will be provided by Wednesday, Sept. 15, to all pre-registrants on how to verify their vaccination status. The Academy said it will require all attendees to be “fully vaccinated by Nov. 10” in order to attend the in-person meeting in New Orleans.

Unvaccinated individuals can still participate in AAO 2021 by registering for the virtual option, AAO noted.

In addition, individuals with medical or religious exemptions for vaccination can still participate in AAO 2021 by registering for the virtual option, the organization noted.
 
The accepted vaccines are:

  • Pfizer-BioNTech
  • Johnson & Johnson’s Janssen
  • Moderna
  • AstraZeneca-Oxford
  • Sinopharm
  • Serum Institute of India: Covishield
  • Sinovac: CoronaVac