(AP) – Airlines and other companies in the tourism industry are backing up so-called vaccine passports to boost pandemic travel, and European authorities could embrace the idea soon enough for the peak summer holiday season.
Technology companies and travel-related business groups are developing and testing different versions of vaccine passports, also called health certificates or travel permits.
However, it is unclear whether any of the developing passports will be widely accepted worldwide, and the result could be confusion among travelers and disappointment for the tourism industry.
Here are some key questions about health credentials.
WHAT IS A VACCINE PASSPORT?
The documentation shows that a traveler was vaccinated against COVID-19 or tested negative for the virus that causes it.
The information is stored on a phone or other mobile device that the user shows to airline employees and border officers. The Biden administration and others also want a paper version available.
WHO DESIGNS THEM?
The trade group for global airlines, the International Air Transport Association, is testing a version it calls the Travel Pass. IBM is developing another, called the Digital Health Pass. There are several other private sector initiatives.
Some countries get involved and use passports beyond air travel. Israel uses a new “green passport” to ensure that only people who have been vaccinated or recovered from COVID-19 can attend public events, such as concerts. Denmark expects to issue a permit to allow vaccinated people to travel with fewer restrictions.
WHY DO TRAVEL COMPANIES WANT THEM?
International air travel collapsed during the pandemic, as countries imposed restrictions such as quarantine or direct bans to reduce the spread of the virus. Airlines rely on vaccine passports to persuade governments to drop some of these restrictions that discourage visitors.
“The significance of this for the resumption of international aviation cannot be overstated,” said Alexandre de Juniac, CEO of the commercial airline group.
Hotel operators who depend on international visitors are also eager to see the permits adopted.
The commercial group of the airlines tested its application on Wednesday on a Singapore Airlines flight to London. A passenger was given a digital version of his passport, coronavirus test results and travel restrictions on a mobile device.
WHERE WOULD THESE STEPS BE NECESSARY?
Vaccine passports will be the most common on international flights. Some countries already require proof of vaccination for diseases such as yellow fever, and the United States now requires a negative test for COVID-19 to enter the country, so a digital health passport is not a leap.
WHAT ARE THE RISKS?
Available vaccines are most effective in preventing serious disease, but this does not rule out the possibility that vaccinated travelers may spread the virus.
“I think we have enough evidence right now to say that these vaccines reduce transmission, that vaccinated people are much less likely to transmit the disease,” says Ashish Jha, dean of the School of Public Health at Brown University. “How much does it cost? We don’t know.” He suspects it’s about 80 percent.
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention still recommends the trip, even though the agency has relaxed other guidelines for people who have been vaccinated.
WHAT ABOUT CORRECTION?
Other critics say the certificates will primarily benefit people in richer countries and relatively rich people in each country – those who are most likely to be vaccinated quickly and most likely to have smartphones.
“It will be the rich, the privileged, who will get to fly and other people will not have access to it,” says Lisa Eckenwiler, who teaches health ethics at George Mason University. She sees great potential for injustice if health extends to workplaces and schools.
WHAT ABOUT CONFIDENTIALITY?
Consumers will be nervous to share health information that could be broken or exposed in a violation, says Stephen Beck of CG42 management consulting.
“When it comes to this, people will ask themselves, is it worth sharing sensitive information for a leisure trip?” he says, “and for many, the answer will be no.”
IATA and IBM say their permits use blockchain technology, and the information will not be stored in a central location.
WHAT ROLE WILL THE US GOVERNMENT PLAY?
Airlines and business groups are pressuring the White House to take the lead in setting standards for health permits. They believe that this would avoid an overcrowding of regional accreditations that could cause confusion among travelers and prevent the widespread acceptance of a single health certificate.
But the Biden administration says it is up to the private sector and nonprofits to find out how Americans can prove they have been vaccinated or tested.
“It’s not the government’s job to have this data and do it,” White House virus counsel Andy Slavitt said this week. “It must be private, the data should be secure, access to it should be free, it should be available both digitally and on paper and in several languages.”
Other governments, such as those in Israel and Denmark, are taking a more active role.
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David Koenig can be contacted at www.twitter.com/airlinewriter
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