The Biden administration is moving forward on a plan to enable people to show proof they’ve been vaccinated.
These credentials, referred to as passports, health certificates or travel passes, are in part a result of airline and business groups lobbying the White House to set standards.
Federal “passes” would streamline the process, removing the hurdles sure to arise from a regional-credential system.
In a story from the Washington Post, the starting point is reported to be the offices of Health and Human Services, which must take a “bigger role coordinating government agencies involved in the work, led by coronavirus coordinator Jeff Zients.”
The right tone has to be found.
“Our role is to help ensure that any solutions in this area should be simple, free, open source, accessible to people both digitally and on paper, and designed from the start to protect people’s privacy,” Zients said at a March 12 briefing.
Biden has predicted that “normal” life could return by Christmas, and, with these “vaccine passports,” the transition could proceed more smoothly.
Already, many among the worldwide governments seek proof of vaccinations before foreigners can enter their borders.
The path could serve to divide global citizens, however, creating ethical and logistical issues.
A quote from a Fox Business story warned: “A chaotic and ineffective vaccine credential approach could hamper our pandemic response by undercutting health safety measures, slowing economic recovery, and undermining public trust and confidence.”
The story said that was from a slide at a March 2 conference prepared by the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention still recommends against travel even as the agency has relaxed other guidelines for vaccinated people.
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