Vaccine Passports Poised to Become Fixture in Post-COVID Life
A Covid-19 vaccine card given out in College Park, Ga., last month. Source: EPA via NYT
As vaccines become more widely available in the US and a return to normalcy hopefully draws near, private companies have started to work with the Biden administration to create standardized vaccine credentials. Already, industries ranging from entertainment to cruise lines have said they will require proof of vaccination from travelers, sports fans and others in order to provide customers with confidence and to provide some assurance that disruptions will not continue to plague their businesses.
In New York, IBM has begun testing a digital pass program and globally, the World Health Organization has started work on their “Smart Vaccination Certificate.” In Israel, widespread use of the “green pass” is already in place, and in the European Union, green certificates that are both virtual and physical will be used to ease travel restrictions within Europe. As these programs make headlines and the arrival of some form of “vaccine passport” seems inevitable for adoption in the United States, voices from all sides of the political spectrum have started to debate the merits or even legitimacy of such a program.
On the left, worries over inequality in vaccine distribution for marginalized groups has some worried that vaccine passports will create a new class of privileged people who can travel freely and participate more broadly in various activities while others are left behind. In the US alone, communities that have been hardest hit by COVID are getting vaccinated at the lowest rates in city after city. Implementing a post-Covid passport system is seen as furthering the inequalities that hammered these very communities. Outside the US, the global inequalities are just as stark, with wealthy countries projected to be vaccinated en-masse by this summer while middle income and lower-income countries may wait until 2023 to have widespread vaccine access. These grim projections show how entire swaths of the world and economic activity may be marginalized further if vaccine passports are required. Proponents of the vaccine passport would argue that many countries already require proof of other vaccinations such as Yellow Fever before travel, and the US requires vaccines against 14 diseases before immigration to this country is allowed. Using this logic, new vaccine requirements for COVID would simply be an extension of pre-existing rules and restrictions.
On the right, the passport proposals are often considered evidence of Democrat hypocrisy, attempts to limit freedom, and government overreach. The Libertarian Party of Kentucky compared the passports to the yellow Stars of David used to identify Jews during the Holocaust. Elected state officials in Florida and Ohio promised constituents that any laws including vaccine passports would be vetoed.
Criticism of vaccine passports ignores the fact that in many cases it would be up to the discretion of private businesses whether or not to mandate proof of vaccination, and it has not yet been indicated that it would be legally required in any instance. A common sentiment among the GOP points to the hypocrisy of Democrats supporting vaccine passports while simultaneously fighting voter ID requirements. However, this argument ignores the distinction between a constitutionally protected right such as voting compared to a privilege such as traveling or going to a concert or movie theater. Additionally, it would be expected that obtaining a vaccine passport would be free and a covered government expense, just as the vaccines were. This would help ensure lower-income individuals could obtain passports at no cost, which is frequently an impediment to obtaining other forms of identification that might be used for Voter ID requirements.
As for UNC students, it is debatable how much of an impact a passport program may have. As of now, UNC has stated that they will not require all students to receive the vaccine, meaning access to UNC sporting events or buildings on campus remain open to both the vaccinated and unvaccinated. However, private businesses in Chapel Hill including bars or concert venues could conceivably require students to demonstrate proof of vaccination before access to their businesses or venues. Students looking to study abroad may also very well expect other countries to require proof upon entry and within the country at specific venues.
All criticisms should be considered of any government program that holds personal data and could become a very real and very big part of our lives moving forward in the post-COVID world. Americans should be wary of any technology that is poised to maintain sensitive medical data or other identifiers that could form a basis for discrimination. However, the reality going forward points toward a “new normal” that relies not only on getting vaccinated but also being able to offer proof of that vaccination to enjoy benefits that were taken for granted not long ago.