The state of New York became the first in the United States, and it is expected that it will not be the only one, to require vaccination passports against Covid-19 so that residents in that territory can access events and public places of high concentration of people.
The technology will help demonstrate that the citizen is negative for Covid-19 in a recent test or, failing that, that he has already been vaccinated with any of the current formulations in the United States. For this you can use the virtual wallet of your phone (on Android or iOS) or a printed copy to display a QR code.
At the moment that foresees that the mythical Madison Square Garden in New York City will begin to demand said document, named Excelsior Pass, to allow the entry of the public.
State officials emphasized that Excelsior Pass was strictly voluntary for both companies and the general public, although it will be an essential requirement to be able to access these types of places.
On the concern of many about the security of their personal data when presenting the digital document, officials said that applications powered by IBM do not store or track private health data.
Another of the difficulties that are handled is the technical challenge that it represents, since at the access point to these facilities it must be guaranteed that the QR codes are recognized. Also, there is also no direct link between tickets and passes, so you cannot automatically prove that you have been vaccinated when you buy seats.
Many are of the opinion that just as many Americans have resisted wearing masks during the pandemic, some will reject the idea of showing a certificate to enter a ball game or nightclub.
Requiring vaccination “is not something we’ve done before in this country outside of the school systems and hospitals,” Amy Fairchild, dean of Ohio State University and historian and ethicist, said in an interview with Usa Today.
He further added that it would be incredibly useful from a public health standpoint and could eventually be expanded to cover flu and measles vaccines, if public opinion did.
The United States reached more than 30 million confirmed cases of coronavirus and 548,052 deaths from COVID-19 this past Friday, according to the independent count from Johns Hopkins University.
California is now the worst hit state by the pandemic with 58,618 deaths, followed by New York (49,848), Texas (47,947), Florida (33,116), Pennsylvania (24,932), New Jersey (24,358) and Illinois (23,472).
The vaccination campaign throughout the country is progressing at a better rate than expected, but the doses applied to the population have not yet managed to cut the rate of infections among those who have not yet been vaccinated.