Vaccine Passports for Events — And How It Impacts You
Recently, some of our team attended the Northstar Meetings Group online event, “Are Covid Passports Next for Meetings.” And we heard one resounding thought.
Yes, digital vaccine passports are coming.
Vaccine Requirements for Meetings and Events
Terry Jones, Managing Principal for On, Inc., founder of Travelocity.com, author, and speaker, went through what digital vaccine passports would look like for international and US events.
We were introduced to some good information about vaccine passports but left with many questions. Today, we want to take a few minutes to go over the looming questions about international travel, local events, and the vaccine discussion.
Buckle in cause it may be a bumpy ride.
International Travel and Vaccine Passports
If you travel internationally, you will need a Covid-19 vaccine, among the other currently required vaccines per country, plain and simple. At least for the immediate future.
Vaccine Passports
Around since the 1900s, we are exchanging paper documentation for digital copies.
Vaccine passports or a form of them have been around since the 1900s. Traveling to some places across the world, you have always had to update your vaccine records, according to that country’s law.
Historically it has been a paper document. Evolving to a digitized passport via apps will make the record-keeping safer from fraud and more efficient for everyone involved!
Currently, the EU is opening to international travelers who have been vaccinated, and the US and UK expect to be on that list soon! As the world “unlocks,” we will all be managing new risks with international travel plans.
Public Spaces and Events in the US
But vaccine passports for international travel are not what many people have qualms about. The heavier, community-altering proposition involves carrying vaccine proof across state lines or entering various restaurants, live entertainment venues, or events.
From local businesses to statewide mandates, things are changing.
Florida, Texas, Iowa, Montana, Nebraska, Georgia, Tennessee, Utah, Arizona, Idaho, and South Carolina have banned vaccine passports, while some states like California, New York, and Hawaii are implementing some local vaccine requirements.
What Does This Mean for Local Community Events?
Many people see the numbers going down as the vaccines are going out. And they have questions.
As we’re seeing a downward trend in infections and mortality from Covid in the US, we know that there’s both naturally acquired immunity and vaccinations to thank! We also know how to treat this disease and lessen exposure. This begs the question, What if Covid becomes more manageable like the flu?
Part of being human is being attacked by nasty bugs like this one from time to time. Also, part of being human is thinking we can control it and, in attempting to do so, lose much of our freedoms and bring on other unintended consequences.
Where the proposed vaccine passport solution for local events gets problematic is — who can decide what vaccines are required and how restrictive it becomes. By the time digital passports become available — if Covid stays more manageable — will we still be required to show proof of vaccination to various organizations and events because the system is up and running?
Secondarily, there are more questions about the feasibility of revolving standards —
Will we be restricted from travel via air/car/boat state-to-state and internationally?
What activities will require the passport locally, and for what sized groups?
When would a required vaccine come off the list?
And for event planners, how will we deal with the varying regulations and opinions as we continue to bring in-person events back?
These are all unknowns as we move into the middle of 2021. And planners have their work cut out in new ways in the coming months.
The Great (Or Not So Great) Covid Vaccine Discussion
Unfortunately, in this vaccine discussion, there are so many viewpoints.
If you are nervous about the vaccine, have health concerns, or want to see it completely FDA-approved before considering it, some would like to leave you out of every live event. While some are adamant that natural immunity will not last long, we are still in the early phases of seeing just how long it lasts.
If you’re on social media or you’ve heard a speaker discuss vaccine passports, you may have heard something like this: if local institutions or events require proof of Covid vaccination for entry, it’s just like the state mandating putting your seatbelt on to drive or having to go outside if you’d like to smoke.
The thing is, it’s not the same.
Both of these laws are things you do for a set period of time — a vaccine with new science is a permanent and potentially dangerous for some decision.
Some questions to consider are —
Should there be an option to still test for antibodies before taking the vaccine? And if you contracted Covid and therefore produced your own immunity, shouldn’t you be able to travel without a vaccine?
We all have to take care of each other. That is true. And part of taking care of each other is recognizing our intrinsic worth, accepting that people need to make the best medical choice for their health while thinking of others.
While many questions are floating around, life is moving forward. People have been flying and meeting safely for months. Now that the vaccine is being distributed, we hope that this thing will be defeated or, at the very least, held at bay.
We celebrate that life is returning and pray for some sort of “normal” as we all begin meeting together again. Sadly, our country is in a holding pattern of widening the divide on opinions instead of coming together to celebrate our “wins.”
Friend, we have come through so much this past year. As we all make decisions for our health, neighbors, friends, and family members — may we show a little grace to others as we navigate the new unknown.
Even if they don’t think exactly like you or I do.
