Health Passports: Temporary Fix or New Normal? What you need to know

Over the course of the pandemic, you’ve no doubt heard something about vaccine or health ‘passports’. Although nothing has been formalised, these passports would essentially be some kind of documentation confirming whether someone has received a COVID-19 vaccine or other relevant treatments.  

This idea is being widely discussed by both employers and governments across the globe as a means to reopen the economy safely. There are various proposed methods for implementing a health passport so, how would it work?  

How could it work  

One of the methods proposed, by technology firm IBM, involves using blockchain technology to manage individuals'’ credentials. Blockchain is a digital ledger system used mainly in the trading of cryptocurrency. It works by keeping a record of transactions that are verified by the parties involved and storing them on a ‘block’.  

Users of a passport built on blockchain would be able to provide authorities with a set of tamperproof and verified credentials confirming whatever information is necessary for safe travel. This method is being trialled in the US but alternative methods have been proposed by several UK-based companies. 

A method proposed by the firm Onfido, based on facial recognition technology, is being considered by the UK Government. This technology will be familiar to anyone who holds a bank account with one of the new digital banks. 

Individuals would take a selfie and a picture of their government-issued ID to register within a government-sanctioned app. This app would then be able to confirm an individual's identity. They would then need to arrange a covid test and/or vaccination. The result of this would be recorded by the NHS and against that individual's profile. People would then be able to present this information in some format from the app itself. 

One method we could see rolled out very shortly is currently being trialled by the International Air Traffic Association (IATA). Etihad, Emirates, Qantas and others have been pilot testing the IATA’s Travel Pass scheme, the first of its kind in the world. In their words, they are trying to produce “A global and standardized solution to validate and authenticate all country regulations regarding COVID-19 passenger travel requirements”. 

It sounds more complicated than it is. The IATA is working on a digital platform that would allow travellers to log on, view specific requirements and prerequisites for their journey. The platform would also work in conjunction with testing laboratories, airlines, and vaccination centres to confirm correct, up-to-date information is available for the relevant authorities. 

Having some form of digital health identity, or passport is clearly a popular idea with authorities. It could provide an avenue to begin re-opening international business and trade, as well as large domestic events. While the technology itself is relatively simple, implementing it successfully has significant implications and not just for healthcare.  

The UK’s Digital Identity  

The technology powering health passports is the same being used by other digital identity services. ‘Digital Identity’ refers to technologies that allow individuals to share their verified credentials digitally with whoever needs that information. As public services become increasingly digitised, having a national digital ID scheme is fast becoming necessary.  

Proponents of digital identity have been lobbying the UK Government for the past several years to try and implement the scheme at a national level. Last month, the government launched a campaign asking for feedback from experts on how to approach a potential digital identity framework. 

Implementation of a health passport could be the UK’s first step on our journey to having a nationally issued ID document.  

Smaller countries, like Estonia, have proven that digital ID can be implemented incredibly effectively on a large scale. Issued at birth, Estonian citizens can use their digital ID to access nearly all possible public services online, even voting. Submissions for feedback on the UK’s proposed framework were closed on the 11th March so in the coming weeks it is likely we’ll see further announcements about our country's digital identity framework. 

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