New Orleans and COVID-19

Our highest priority is the safety and well-being of our community; it’s at the forefront of our planning for IASA Xchange™. We’re following CDC guidelines and state and federal requirements for our meeting, as a minimum.

 

For those attending in-person, per New Orleans mandates, masks are required for all persons indoors.

Update // August 19, 2021

IASA Xchange™ and (new) New Orleans Vaccination Requirements

NEW: Verification of vaccination or a negative PCR test within the most recent 72 hours will NO LONGER be required for entrance to the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center per the City of New Orleans. However, IASA will again require vaccination affirmation statements. If you are unable to sign the affirmation, a negative PCR test completed 72 hours prior to entering IASA contracted space will be required.  Vaccination proof and/or negative PCR testing requirements remain in effect for all other venues, including the Tuesday evening reception at the Hilton held during IASA Xchange.

The COVID-19 Delta variant situation remains fluid, and we’d like to provide an update on the situation on-the-ground for IASA Xchange™. The City of New Orleans is not requiring confirmation of vaccination nor negative PCR tests for access to the Convention Center. Therefore, IASA is reinstituting its requirement for all on-site attendees, speakers, vendors, sponsors, staff, suppliers, and more to affirm they are or will be fully vaccinated before access to IASA Xchangewill be granted. If you haven’t done so already, please confirm your vaccination status here. If you are a new, on-site registrant, the registration form will ask you to verify your status. If you are unable to affirm your vaccination status, you will not be permitted to the event on-site, and a refund will not be granted. We appreciate your adherence to this policy, as it’s only implemented to protected you, our members, staff, attendees, speakers, and others in New Orleans at IASA Xchange. Please see below updates for resources that may be helpful. Be well.

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Update // August 13, 2021

IASA Xchange™ and (new) New Orleans Vaccination Requirements

The COVID-19 Delta variant situation remains fluid, and we’d like to provide an update on the situation on-the-ground for IASA Xchange™. Effective August 16, 2021, the City of New Orleans is requiring proof of vaccination and/or a negative COVID-19 PCR test within the past 72 hours before access to any bars, restaurants, music and event venues, hotel ballrooms and other public spaces in the city, including the IASA host venue — the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center — is granted. Vaccine confirmation and/or negative PCR test results will be checked at the door of each establishment. A previously instituted indoor mask mandate remains in effect city-wide, regardless of vaccination status, and will be in effect for the duration of IASA Xchange™. For more information on the City of New Orleans’ COVID-19 mandates, please visit this webpage. IASA has implemented additional COVID-19 safety protocols for the duration of the conference, and details on these efforts can be found here. For people interested in the conference but are unable to travel or attend in-person, virtual meeting options are available and encouraged.

Please know that the safety of our speakers, members, partners, sponsors, attendees, staff, and vendors are our top priority. We thank you all for your continued support of IASA. For the speakers, attendees, sponsors, and exhibitors who are joining us later this month in New Orleans, we look forward to seeing you in person. To prove your vaccination status, you can use the LA Wallet app; an original, digital photograph, or photocopy of CDC vaccination cards (both sides); or an official vaccine record issued by another state, foreign nation or the World Health Organization. For questions related to the conference, COVID-19 protocols on site, your registration, and more, please email us.

RESOURCES

New Orleans created this resource with links to hospitals/urgent cares/etc.

Testing locations near IASA Xchange (the closest drugstores are CVS and Walgreens — all a 12 minute drive from the Convention Center):

CVS (Rapid Test)

4401 S. Claiborne

New Orleans, LA 70125

Schedule a test

CVS (Rapid Test)

2105 Cleary Avenue

Metairie, LA 70001

Schedule a test

Walgreens (Rapid Test)

1100 Elysian Fields Avenue

New Orleans, LA 70117

Schedule a test

Walgreens (Rapid Test)

4400 S. Claiborne Avenue

New Orleans, LA 70125

Schedule a test

Be healthy and safe.

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If you have already registered for the conference, please monitor your email for instructions on how you can affirm, in writing, that you are completely vaccinated, according to CDC guidelines [received the full vaccine dose(s) based on the manufacturer with the required waiting period following the vaccine administered]. If you haven’t registered for the conference, and plan to attend in-person (as an attendee, exhibitor, or sponsor), you will be required to affirm your vaccination status on the registration form.

Other notes worth mentioning:

    • *If you plan to attend in-person, and you have not yet been vaccinated, the Johnson & Johnson single-dose vaccine should be readily available nationwide and will provide you with the three-week waiting period between receiving the vaccine and being fully-vaccinated by the time the conference begins on August 29. Time is of the essence. Do not delay. Find a vaccine provider near you.
    • * Temperature checks are no longer required by the New Orleans Convention Center, so they will not occur.
    • * We are continuing to provide socially distanced seating in our session rooms. The exhibit hall will have wider aisles and spaced booths, and our Tuesday evening reception will be held outside.
    • * Our registration area will have touchless card readers and plexiglass partitions, as well as social distancing reminders on the floor for a hands-free experience.
    • * We will have hand sanitation stations throughout the center to help reduce the contamination.
    • * Meals for our events will be individually packaged to reduce cross contamination.
    • * And finally, we are providing attendees with optional wrist bracelets daily that indicate their level of comfort for social distancing (hands off, elbow bumps, handshakes, or hug me).

 

We will continue to monitor CDC guidelines and state and federal requirements for any changes and will adjust our protocols to be in compliance with them.

For up-to-date information on New Orleans COVID-19 requirements, please visit this website.