US govt will not issue vaccine passports, cites privacy and rights

White House press secretary Jen Psaki on Wednesday announced that the United States government will not issue vaccine passports, but said private businesses were free to explore the idea. “The government is not now, nor will be, supporting a system that requires Americans to carry a credential,” she said, reported BBC.

“Our interest is very simple from the federal government, which is Americans’ privacy and rights should be protected, and so that these systems are not used against people unfairly,” Psaki added.

Also read: US has administered 150 million vaccine jabs, announces VP Kamala Harris

According to BBC’S report, many countries around the world are searching for ways to introduce vaccine passports, an official document that would be used to verify if a person has been vaccinated against COVID-19. This would be helpful in safely reopening international travel and mass gatherings.

A scheme called ‘Covid status certification‘ is already under development in the United Kingdom, while Israel is currently issuing a “Green Pass” to those who have received the jab.

Also read: EU proposes vaccine pass to help save tourism

Meanwhile, the World Health Organisation (WHO) on Tuesday said that it does not support the system of vaccination passports as of now because of discrimination fears and uncertainty over whether inoculation prevents transmission.

US President Joe Biden announced on Tuesday that he is expanding the eligibility of getting the COVID-19 vaccine to all adults across America within two weeks. “All American adults will now be eligible to get a vaccine shot from April 19,” he said in a tweet.

The country has reported nearly 31 million cases of coronavirus and more than 550,000 deaths linked to the deadly virus, as per the data released by Johns Hopkins University.