Health passport: here is the digital green certificate
Health passport
The European Commission had announced it: March 17 would be the day of the presentation of a first proposal for a health passport related to the vaccination campaign and so it was. In the midst of the chaos-AstraZeneca, in the midst of a "third wave" that is frightening the whole continent, the EU wants to look ahead and put on the plate the idea of a digital green certificate that allows free and safe travel on European territory in months to come, regardless of the evolution of the pandemic.Health passport: here is the digital green certificate
This is how the Commission announces its proposal:The certificate will be available, free of charge, in digital or paper format, and will include a QR code that will guarantee its safety and authenticity. The Commission will put in place a gateway to ensure that all certificates can be verified across the EU and will help Member States in the technical implementation of certificates. It will always be up to the Member States to decide which health restrictions travelers can be exempted from. However, Member States will have to apply these exemptions in the same way to travelers holding a digital green certificate.
In putting forward its proposal, the Commission puts forward a number of principles around which it counts develop the project:
Accessible and safe certificates
Three types of certificates will have to be part of the green certificate: vaccination certificates, test certificates (NAAT / RT-PCR test or rapid antigen test), and certificates for people cured of COVID-19; in addition, the release will take place both digitally and on paper, complete with a QR Code containing a digital signature of authentication; a special gateway set up by the EU will ensure the correct management of personal data; certificates will be free Non-discrimination
"Member States that accept proof of vaccination for the purpose of exemption from certain health restrictions such as testing or quarantine would be required to accept vaccination certificates under the same conditions issued under the digital green certificate system ": any contrary decision must be duly motivated before the Commission. Only essential information
The certificate must not contain information that is not essential, therefore only the name, date of birth, date of issue, relevant information regarding the vaccine / tests / recovery, and a unique identifier of the certificate
As soon as the WHO declares the international health emergency Covid-19 over, digital green certificates will lose their effectiveness as they are closely linked to the management of the current circumstances of containment of the pandemic.
The digital green certificate offers an EU-wide solution that guarantees all European citizens the availability of a harmonized digital tool that facilitates free movement in the Union. It is a positive message in support of the recovery. Our main objectives are to offer an easy-to-use, non-discriminatory, and secure tool that fully respects data protection. We also continue to work for international convergence with other partners
Věra Jourová, Vice-President for Values and Transparency
The Commission now hopes for a rapid intervention of analysis by of the European Parliament and Council, so that by the summer the works can be completed: this piece would be fundamental for the restoration of safe travel, saving as much as possible the summer tourist season without repercussions on the shared effort to contain infections.
The digital green certificate can serve as proof of vaccination, testing and recovery in order to avoid restrictions on free movement applied in a Member State for public health reasons, such as the requirement to undergo a test or quarantine.
If you accept proof of vaccination as a basis for not applying restrictions on free movement, a Member State will have to accept proof of vaccine issued by another Member State relating to vaccines that have obtained a marketing authorization in the EU.
In parallel, Member States will have to start working towards a rapid transposition of the proposal, so that everyone can get on board in good time and the advantage achieved can really be a collective and shared result.
Source: European Commission
