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Last week, the Washington Post reported that “The Biden administration and private companies are working to develop a standard way of handling credentials — often referred to as ‘vaccine passports’ — that would allow Americans to prove they have been vaccinated against the novel coronavirus as businesses try to reopen… One of the most significant hurdles facing federal officials: the sheer number of passport initiatives underway, with the Biden administration this month identifying at least 17.” Washington Post
On Tuesday White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki stated, “The government is not now, nor will we be supporting a system that requires Americans to carry a credential. There will be no federal vaccinations database and no federal mandate requiring everyone to obtain a single vaccination credential.” Whitehouse.gov
“Gov. Greg Abbott signed an executive order Tuesday to ban government-required ‘vaccine passports’ in Texas, following a similar decision from Florida last week.” NBC News
The right opposes vaccine passports, arguing that no one should be forced to take a vaccine in order to go about everyday life.
“My view of the vaccine is simple: I’m thrilled we have it. But the truth is that we don’t know the long-term risks, because the two most popular vaccines—Pfizer and Moderna—depend on a new technology. I’m willing to take that unknown risk on myself, especially in light of the fact that I travel a lot and don’t want to infect my entire family. But I’m not going to give it to my kids, because the risk of COVID to children is very low…
“Now, maybe your sense of the risks and benefits is different… that’s fine, and that’s exactly the point: it’s your choice. Figure it out for yourself. We should carve out space for families to make these critical decisions themselves… [These passports] also threaten to create an entirely new class hierarchy, at a time when our country has seen exploding inequality and social mistrust. The folks who are most hesitant about the vaccine are Hispanics, Blacks, and lower-income Whites. It’s barbaric to tell people they can’t work or buy groceries—as is being floated in the U.K.—because they’re taking a wait-and-see approach to a radically new technology.”
J.D. Vance, Fox News
Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) writes, “I’m in favor of vaccines. I’m a Duke Medical School trained M.D. and I studied immunology before moving on to my career in eye surgery… I’m also in favor of people making their own medical and personal decisions. By early summer, everyone in America will have been eligible for a vaccine. Between those who took the vaccine or had COVID, there is little to no doubt we will have herd immunity by then, and danger from COVID will be low…
“This makes the idea of a vaccine passport — which is a terrible idea for freedom — a simply poor idea overall, as it should have no impact on anyone. If you are vaccinated, you don’t have to worry if a small segment of the population is not… I urge everyone to get the vaccine if you think you need or want it. And then I urge everyone in America to throw away their masks, demand their schools be open, and live your lives free of more government mandates and interference.”
Sen. Rand Paul, The Hill
“Resistance to getting jabbed is much stronger among certain demographics. Are Cuomo and the Biden administration really going to issue IDs that turn many African Americans into second-class citizens? How does this square with all the arguments that requiring photo ID to vote is fundamentally racist?…
“Getting solid info for the ID is daunting, too: What of those vaccinated in other states? Is a screenshot of your vaccination card enough? You can already buy fake cards on the dark Web for just $200. Roughly 100 million Americans have already gotten at least one dose. Who’s going to compile and continually update that data — and vet it for accuracy?…
“The bottom line is that it’s another one of those technocratic ideas that at best comes too late and would be near-impossible to make work well in this nation, just as contact-tracing has essentially failed… Our leaders should focus on reopening, not making it harder for Americans to get back to normal.”
Editorial Board, New York Post
The left generally supports vaccine passports, but expresses concerns about privacy and healthcare equity.
The left generally supports vaccine passports, but expresses concerns about privacy and healthcare equity.
“We coerce people all the time, especially when we’ve decided it’s necessary to keep them from hurting others. Forcing you to take a driving test before you get a license — and forcing you to carry that license in case a law enforcement official wants to see it — is coercive. But we do it. We force children to get a range of vaccines before they’re allowed to attend school with other children…
“Conservatives, furthermore, are happy to require people to show a very specific ID before they’re allowed to vote. They would also like to see every employer use a federal government database known as E-Verify to check your citizenship status before they’ll hire you; Republican hero Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a bill mandating just that in Florida.”
Paul Waldman, Washington Post
“Americans don’t like to be told what to do by their government about anything. They believe somehow in the naive view that they are free to do whatever they want, but they forget about things like traffic laws, seatbelt requirements, speeding restrictions…
“Many of the same people who bridle, say conservatives in the U.S., at the notion of vaccine certification being demanded—I’ve seen it referred to as a Nazi regime asking for your papers as you travel about—are perfectly willing to ask for your papers if they think you’re not here legally.”
Arthur Caplan, The Atlantic
“During a series of smallpox outbreaks across the United States from 1898 through 1903, many states authorized compulsory vaccination… Employers across the country acted to make smallpox immunity a condition of employment. Factories, mines, railroads and other industrial workplaces with tight quarters were particularly forceful in demanding proof of vaccination… Social gatherings and clubs, too, sometimes required proof of vaccination.”
Jordan E. Taylor, Time
Some argue that “Just as with contact tracing and exposure apps—which Americans failed to adopt en masse—the rollout is haphazard, the technology unproven, and the privacy issues obvious…
“[Moreover] With an unequal health care system, limited vaccine access, and class-driven technological disparities, vaccine passports may end up being another tool for the rich to return to normal life while the people who are already being failed by our current systems of vaccine rollout find themselves left further out in the cold. As it is, in every state, Black people are receiving vaccinations at a lower rate than their share of the population. Similarly, the vaccination rate for Latinx people is 9 percent, compared to 19 percent for white people. Vaccine passports would only make these gaps more consequential.”
Jacob Silverman, New Republic
“On privacy concerns, I don’t see why the passport needs to be tech-enabled at all. Everyone vaccinated gets a card with a record of their shots. Just laminate that and we’re good to go. Yes, they can be forged, but the reality is that very few people, relatively speaking, will go through that trouble.”
David Dayen, American Prospect
