Is there an app that allows you to prove that you have been vaccinated against COVID? : Goat and soda: NPR

A pile of COVID-19 vaccination record cards provided by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. They provide proof that you have succeeded-but not exactly the size of a 4 x 3 inch wallet. Ben Hasty/MediaNews Group/Reading Eagle (Pa.) via Getty Images) hide caption
A pile of COVID-19 vaccination record cards provided by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. They provide proof that you have succeeded-but not exactly the size of a 4 x 3 inch wallet.
Every week, we answer frequently asked questions about life during the coronavirus crisis. If you have any questions you would like us to consider in future posts, please send an email to goatsandsoda@npr.org, subject line: “Weekly Coronavirus Issues”. View our archive of frequently asked questions here.
I heard that more and more events require vaccination certificates: eating out, attending concerts, flying internationally-maybe at some point in the United States, do I really need to carry that awkward paper certificate with me? -Vaccine card?
The former director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Dr. Tom Frieden, said that the thin 4 x 3 inch piece of paper is the best evidence that we are currently vaccinated — there is a problem.
“For now, you should bring the original vaccination card,” said Frieden, who is now the CEO of Resolve to Save Lives, a non-profit organization focused on public health. “This is not a good thing, because a) you might lose it, b) if your immune function is low, you are actually telling people that because you got the third dose, it reveals health information.” Then , He added that people who have not been vaccinated may get fake cards. (In fact​​, NPR reports on the sale of blank cards on Amazon.com, although using blank cards is a crime.)
Frieden and others are advocating for a safer, more accurate and flexible system of national guidelines to prove that you have been vaccinated.
“The frank truth is that authorization and vaccine passports have become the third line of defense in politics, and it is understandable that the government is unwilling to take action in this regard,” he said. “But the result is that authorization will be more difficult to enforce and less secure.”
So, if you don’t want to carry a paper card with you, what are your options? Depending on where you live, you may be able to use digital devices—at least, if you are close to home.
But when Frieden recently took out his Excelsior Pass, he noticed that it had just expired, six months after his second dose. In order to expand it, he must download an upgrade of the application. In addition, downloading information on the spot may bring security and privacy issues, just like credit cards, “some big brothers know information about customers, shopkeepers, and transactions,” said Ramesh Raskar, an assistant at the MIT Media Lab. Professor-not to mention the trouble. Many users complain that the application is stuck on a blank blue screen.
And there is no guarantee that other states will be able or willing to use the app in your hometown. Most current credential systems can only be verified by applications in the state where they are issued. Therefore, unless you happen to travel to a state that uses the same state, it may not get you far.
“Technical issues such as cell phone crashes or loss are always worrying,” said Henry Wu, director of the Emory TravelWell Center and associate professor of infectious diseases at Emory University School of Medicine. This is not the only potential digital flaw. “Even if you register for one of the digital vaccine certificate or passport system, I will still carry the original card with me during the trip, because there is no [digital] vaccine passport system that is universally recognized,” he said.
Some states, such as Hawaii, have apps specifically for tourists to make it easier for them to produce vaccination certificates while in the state, but other states completely ban vaccination verification apps because they are excessive government actions. For example, the governor of Alabama signed legislation prohibiting the use of digital vaccine certificates in May. This is a summary of the number of states compiled by PC Magazine.
Raskar is also the founder of the PathCheck Foundation. He said that a simpler, cheaper and safer electronic option is for states to send residents a QR code linking to their vaccine status. The foundation is an application for vaccine vouchers and exposure notifications. Program creation software. Israel, India, Brazil and China all use QR code-based systems. The QR code uses a cryptographic signature or electronic fingerprint, so it cannot be copied and used for other names (although if someone steals your driver’s license, they may use your QR code).
You can store the QR code wherever you want: actually on a piece of paper, as a photo on your phone, or even in a beautiful app.
However, so far, the QR code technology can only be used in the city, state, or country where it is issued. Now that the United States has stated that it will allow vaccinated people from other countries to fly in, the certificate may have to be in hard copy format for the time being. Consult your airline before traveling: some apps accept apps that store copies of vaccine cards.
Wu of Emory University said: “I do see a complex challenge before us, requiring verification of documents from all over the world, and there is currently no national digital vaccine passport standard that can help facilitate this process before travelers leave. “I’m not sure whether we have decided which vaccines we will receive.” (This has been a point of contention elsewhere: The European Union, which recognizes digital vaccine passports, only accepts certain vaccines.)
There is another possibility for Americans to travel abroad. If you have an international vaccination and prevention certificate (ICVP, or “yellow card”, World Health Organization travel document), Wu recommends that your vaccination provider add your COVID-19 vaccine. “When traveling overseas, you may encounter officials who are not familiar with our documents, so being able to prove your identity in a variety of ways is very helpful,” he said.
Bottom line: don’t lose that card (however, if you lose it, don’t worry, your state will keep official records). Depending on the state, obtaining alternatives may not be easy. In addition, instead of laminating it, consider using a plastic sleeve vaccine holder: this way, if you inject the vaccine again, it will be easier to update.
Sheila Mulrooney Eldred is a freelance health journalist based in Minneapolis. She has written articles about COVID-19 for many publications, including Medscape, Kaiser Health News, New York Times, and Washington Post. For more information, please visit sheilaeldred.pressfolios.com. On Twitter: @milepostmedia.


Post time: Oct-11-2021