The country’s first “vaccine passport” arrives at the Big Apple.
The program, called the “Excelsior Pass,” is an app that will allow New Yorkers to prove their vaccination status or recent history of a negative COVID-19 test, in order to enter events and business, Governor Cuomo announced communicated Friday.
“Similar to the mobile airline’s boarding pass, people will be able to print their pass or store it on their smartphones using the Excelsior Pass Wallet app,” the press release explains.
“Each Pass will have a secure QR code, which the participating companies and sites will be able to scan through a complementary application to verify the test of the negative results of the COVID-19 test or the vaccination test. A person’s data is kept secure and confidential at all times “.
The app will not display any health information when scanned; it will only show a green check mark if the person has been vaccinated or tested negative or a red “x” if they have not.
Major venues, such as Madany Square Garden and Albany’s Times Union Center, will begin using the app next week, and on April 2, Excelsior Pass will be expanded to “arts, entertainment and events venues. smaller ones, ”said Cuomo’s office.
The app, which was released on Friday, already works to demonstrate vaccination status or negative test results and can be used to access wedding receptions, which now require negative testing by attendees and other events. above the limit of social gatherings.
“New Yorkers have shown they can follow public health guidelines to overcome COVID, and the innovative Excelsior Pass is another tool in our new toolbox to fight the virus while allowing more sectors of the economy they can safely reopen and keep personal information secure, ”he said in a statement.
“The question of ‘public health or the economy’ has always been a false choice: the answer must be both. As more New Yorkers are vaccinated every day and as key public health metrics continue to regularly reach the lowest rates of months, the nation’s first Excelsior step heralds the next step in our reflective, science-based reopening. ”
The app, launched after two pilot demonstrations held in recent weeks, will use blockchain technology and encryption to ensure health information is stored securely.
To register, New Yorkers can register by downloading the app and entering personal information to verify their identity. The app will then obtain data from the state vaccine registry and a number of previously approved COVID-19 test companies.