Brendan McDermid | Reuters
LONDON – A Covid digital vaccination passport is being developed jointly by a group of health and technology companies that predict that governments, airlines and other companies will soon start asking people for proof that they have been vaccinated.
A coalition known as the Vaccination Credential Initiative – which includes Microsoft, Salesforce and Oracle, as well as the nonprofit health Mayo Clinic in the United States – was announced on Thursday.
VCI said it wants to develop technology that allows individuals to obtain an encrypted digital copy of their immunization credentials, which can be stored in a digital wallet of their choice, such as Apple Wallet or Google Pay. He suggested that anyone without a smartphone could receive paper printed with QR codes containing verifiable credentials.
The coalition said it will also try to develop new standards to confirm whether or not a person has been inoculated against the virus. Previously, citizens used vaccination books to control their travel vaccines, but officials rarely ask to see them.
“The purpose of the Vaccination Credential Initiative is to empower individuals with digital access to their vaccination records,” said Paul Meyer, CEO of the non-profit organization The Commons Project, which is a member of the coalition, in a statement.
He added that the technology should allow people to “safely return to travel, work, school and life, while protecting the privacy of their data”.
Bill Patterson, executive vice president and general manager of the enterprise software company Salesforce, said his company wants to help organizations “customize all aspects of the vaccination management lifecycle and integrate closely with the offerings of others. coalition members, which will help us all get back to public life. “
“With a single platform to help provide safe and continuous operations and deepen customer and employee confidence, this coalition will be crucial to supporting public health and well-being,” added Patterson.
Microsoft did not immediately respond to CNBC’s request for comment.
Vaccine divides opinions
While many people can hardly wait to protect themselves from the virus, some are adamant that they will not receive the vaccine, leaving populations divided between those who were vaccinated and those who were not. In the UK, one in five say they are unlikely to receive the vaccine, according to a YouGov survey published in November, citing a variety of different reasons.
Millions of people around the world still do not want to be vaccinated, according to opinion polls. Some fear needles, some believe unsubstantiated conspiracy theories, and some are concerned about potential side effects. Others simply do not think that being vaccinated is necessary and prefer to risk taking Covid.
As a result of diverging views, a debate may start to emerge in 2021. Should restrictions be imposed on people who choose not to be vaccinated, since they can catch and spread the virus?
It is a complicated matter, but governments are already considering introducing systems that would allow authorities, and possibly companies, to know whether a person has received the Covid vaccine or not.
In December, it was discovered that Los Angeles County plans to allow Covid vaccine recipients to store immunization vouchers in the Apple Wallet on their iPhone, which can also store tickets and boarding passes in digital format. Officials say it will be used first to remind people to get their second injection of the vaccine, but it can eventually be used to gain access to concert venues or airline flights.
China has launched a health code application that shows whether a person has no symptoms to check into a hotel or use the subway. In Chile, citizens who have recovered from the coronavirus have received “virus-free” certificates.
On December 28, Spain’s Minister of Health, Salvador Illa, said the country would create a registry to show who refused to be vaccinated and that the database could be shared across Europe.
Elsewhere, Delta Air Lines CEO Ed Bastian said in April that immunity passports could be used to help passengers feel more confident in their personal safety while traveling.
A Ryanair spokesman said “vaccination will not be a requirement to fly Ryanair”, when CNBC asked whether this would prevent unvaccinated people from flying their aircraft. British Airways, Qantas and easyJet did not respond to CNBC’s request for comment.
Isra Black, a professor of law at York University, and Lisa Forsberg, a postdoctoral fellow at Oxford University who researches medical ethics, told CNBC that “it is not easy to say whether it would be ethically permissible for a state to impose restrictions” on people who they refuse a jab.
The academics said in a joint e-mailed statement that the answer will depend on factors such as the vaccine supply, the level of vaccination of the population, the nature of the restrictions on vaccine refusers and how the restrictions are operationalized.
“We can think that there are strong reasons, although not necessarily decisive, in favor of some limitation in the recovery of pre-pandemic liberties for individuals who refuse vaccination for Covid-19, for example, about their freedom to assemble,” said Black and Forsberg. “There is a possibility that unvaccinated individuals will contract a serious case of coronavirus, which we consider to be bad for them, but it can also negatively affect others, for example, if health resources have to be diverted from non-Covid care.”