Credit: The Commons Project
Your pre-travel checklist may be about to get longer, as airlines and companies are looking to implement “vaccine passport” requirements.
The Common Trust Network, a partnership between airlines, the World Economic Forum and the non-profit organization The Commons Project, recently introduced the CommonPass application. The application would allow users to upload medical data, such as results from COVID-19 tests or vaccination vouchers. The information is then transmitted using a QR code that would protect confidential information.
Users can also use the app to shop or go to the cinema, depending on the requirements of different businesses and locations.
UK travel restricted due to new coronavirus strain
Belgium, Ireland, Germany, France, Italy and the Netherlands have implemented restrictions on travel to and from the United Kingdom from 20 December, causing chaos in transit centers just days before the Christmas holiday.
“Without the ability to rely on COVID-19 testing – and, eventually, vaccine records – across international borders, many countries will feel compelled to maintain the total travel ban and mandatory quarantines as long as the pandemic persists,” Dr. Bradley Perkins with The Commons Project said in a statement. “With reliable individual health data, countries can implement more differentiated health screening requirements for entry.”
The technology company IBM also recently unveiled its Digital Health Pass. The program allows companies and organizations to create their own requirements, including test results, vaccination vouchers or temperature checks.
RELATED: Ticketmaster’s Post-Pandemic Plans Include Checking Vaccination Status of Concert Goers
Ticketmaster is drawing up plans for people to safely return to music venues. Show attendees may have digital tickets that show whether they had a COVID-19 vaccine or whether the test was negative for the virus until the day of the event. The information will be stored with a third party healthcare provider in accordance with HIPPA laws.
The ticket sales and distribution company said it would be strictly up to the venues to determine and enforce a policy.
The economy is in a renewed recession, as a resurgent virus intensifies difficulties for companies. Consumers have reduced shopping, travel, dining and participation in sporting and entertainment events. The main indicators of the economy – retail sales, unemployment claims, travel expenses – have weakened.
US retail sales fell 1.1% seasonally adjusted in November, according to the U.S. Department of Commerce. It was the biggest drop in seven months and a steeper decline than Wall Street analysts had expected.
In the meantime, several new variants of the coronavirus are sounding alarms in several countries, as vaccines are distributed to healthcare professionals and the most vulnerable.
A variant of coronavirus in the United Kingdom has raised alarm over the possibility of spreading more easily. But even if that is true, experts say the COVID-19 vaccines being launched are likely to still work in the variant.
Dr. Anthony Fauci, the leading infectious disease specialist in the United States, said data from Britain indicate that vaccines will still block the virus. But the United States will also run tests to be sure.
Fauci said the United States is in a critical phase of the pandemic, with the worst likely to lie ahead. He predicted that the general population would begin to be widely immunized in late March or early April – in addition to frontline workers, the elderly and some other segments of the population with vaccine priority.
The Associated Press contributed to this report. This story was reported from Los Angeles.