Vaccination requirements are slowly stretching beyond just employers. 

Gov. Kathy Hochul is calling on sports venues across New York state to start requiring vaccinations. It's something already happening in Western New York at the homes of the Buffalo Bills and Sabres.

What You Need To Know

  • Gov. Hochul is calling on sports venues across New York to start requiring COVID-19 vaccinations
  • If you're planning to attend the Buffalo Bills' next home game on Sept. 26, you will need to show proof of at least one vaccine dose
  • Here are the multiple ways you can prove you’ve gotten a COVID-19 vaccine in New York

If you’re going to a game, you’ll need to show proof. The easiest way to do that is probably to just have your original Centers for Disease Control and Prevention vaccine card.

If you've made a photocopy or took a picture of your vaccine card, that won’t work.

What will be accepted are digital versions, including the Excelsior Pass and CLEAR digital vaccine pass.

The Excelsior Pass launched in New York state about six months ago. It’s a voluntary app that will confirm recent PCR or antigen tests and confirm your fully vaccinated status.

With more places statewide requiring this kind of proof to get in, you might be wondering how you can get it.

The most important thing is that you need to have been vaccinated in New York state or be an New York resident vaccinated here or New Jersey.

You can’t have tested positive for COVID-19 in the last 10 days.

If you're all set there, you just need the date of your second dose and the county you got it in.

Here’s where it gets complicated. If you just moved back to New York and got your vaccine in a different state or are a general out-of-stater, the pass is a no-go.

If you really wanted one, you would need to have an in-state health care provider who could upload your vaccine details.

If you wanted confirmation before the Oct. 31 deadline for the Bills, for example, that might not work.

There are alternatives, including getting a government digital proof of vaccination, but that can be complicated.

There is one easier alternative the Bills are accepting: the CLEAR digital vaccine card.

It’s an app just like the Excelsior Pass, but a bit more involved.

You need to create an account, upload a picture of your passport/state ID and vaccination card, plus put in vaccination details.

It then takes a picture and scans your face to make sure you are actually who you claim to be. The whole process takes a few minutes.

However, depending on where you’re going, what they accept could differ.

Some of these other apps, like CLEAR, are also used outside of New York state. As for the Excelsior app, it’s seen more than 4 million downloads so far, according to the state Department of Heath.

If you've lost your vaccine card, you can check with your vaccine provider, like CVS or Rite Aid.

If that doesn’t work, you can contact your state’s immunization information system.

You can find reach the New York state contact for by clicking here or calling 1-833-NYS-4-VAX (1-833-697-4829).