After a year of canceled concerts, closed-door sporting events, and restricted air travel, vaccine passports are being touted as a way to quicken the route back to normalcy.
The premise is straightforward: A digital or paper document will indicate whether individuals have received a COVID-19 vaccination or, in some cases, recently tested negative for the coronavirus. This could allow them to travel more freely within their communities, enter other countries, or engage in leisure activities that have largely been closed off during the pandemic.
Vaccine passports seem like a desirable alternative to continuing lockdowns until herd immunity—estimated to occur at about a 70%-85% vaccination rate—is achieved.
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