The vaccination campaign in the United States and the issue of the digital “vaccination passport” are on the table, despite the growing political controversy surrounding it and the fragmentation of the decentralized health system that complicates central data management, according to the APE.
17-year-old Asher Wintrop is very pleased with the new digital pass of the state of New York that he has downloaded on his mobile phone and with a QR code he certifies immunity against Covid.
“I think it’s positive, you don’t have to show a lot of papers every time,” he says, pointing to his code at the entrance to one of the first public performances in Manhattan since March 2020.
In the US, denial of a “passport” is becoming a republican affair
With the support of Democratic Governor Andrew Cuomo, the New York is the only US state to have introduced the “passport”, on a voluntary basis, in collaboration with technology giant IBM. Other governors, mostly Republicans, loathe the idea.
Florida Republican Gov. Ron DeSadis was the first to sign a decree banning state administrators from issuing “any standard document “certifying that a citizen has been vaccinated against Covid and companies requiring their clients to have a certificate of immunity”, arguing that this “would restrict individual freedoms and violate the principle of confidentiality of personal data”.
Yesterday, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott banned a number of organizations from requiring evidence. vaccination, while in Pennsylvania, some Republican lawmakers are also moving in that direction. South Dakota Gov. Christie Noem called the passport idea “anti-American.”
Without a federal umbrella
In the face of this war, the Biden government decided not to take a stand. Yesterday, White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki reassured that “there will be no federal obligation to require a single vaccination certificate from everyone.” And that Washington will be content with recommendations to ensure that the systems implemented will be equal and guarantee the confidentiality and security of personal data.
However, even if they are not federal in nature, few Americans have doubts that these digital certificates will be implemented in a world where smartphones have become a staple of everyday life. Many are watching with interest the “green pass” applied in Israel, the country that has become the forerunner of the developments in the exit from the health crisis due to the speed of the vaccination campaign.
Non-governmental initiatives
Along with the New York “pass”, the Common Pass plan, with global ambitions, seems to be the most developed.
The project belongs to the non-profit organization Commons Project, which specializes in the interconnection of digital health data. This “pass” is used by several international airlines, according to its director Paul Mager.
Unlike the system in the New York State Digital Certificate of Immunity, the platform is based on non-commercial, free software. “Neutral” and “secure” in terms of personal data protection, the platform is evolving into a “model” of a booming sector, with vaccination advances and pressure to recover economic activity.
Talks are under way with the European Union – which is developing a “green pass” plan that would allow travel within the Schengen area and, separately, with several European governments, says Paul Mager, without giving further details.
The introduction of such a digital passport is “simpler” than in the United States, he says: the public, general, health systems of European countries already collect health data, while in the US, where the health system is mostly private and where each state has its own health services, everything is fragmented.
Return of freedom
If American political polarization can slow down the implementation of the Common Pass, he hopes that the argument for a return to freedom – freedom to travel, watch a match or a play – that supports the “fold” will eventually prevail.
Marcus Plessia, ASTHO medical director who includes U.S. health officials, also said that “most people will realize that a vaccine passport will be useful in at least some situations” and that “restrictions will vary depending on whether one is he vaccinated or not “.
At the moment the debate is “a little early”, as only 20 million Americans are fully vaccinated. But it would not be surprising if a vaccination certificate against Covid would soon become required in schools, once the use of the vaccines has been approved for younger ages, as well as by some private sector employers.
“I think part of the skepticism will go away when people realize how much they can do if they are vaccinated,” he said.
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