Major U.S. airlines and over 30 travel groups are urging the White House to lead the development of a standardized, temporary travel credential that would allow travelers to carry digital proof of coronavirus testing and vaccination status.
While various technology companies and travel groups have developed their own COVID passports, the travel industry believes a government-backed credential is necessary to expedite an economic recovery to the industry.
“The U.S. must be a leader in this development,” the groups wrote in a letter to COVID-19 Recovery Team Coordinator Jeff Zients on Monday. “The current diverse and fragmented digital health credentials used to implement different countries’ air travel testing requirements risk causing confusion, reducing compliance, and increasing fraud.”
Airlines for America (A4A) Executive Sharon Pinkerton said she believes a standardized digital credential could increase confidence in the travel industry, to appease the pent up demand for travel.
While the industry doesn’t want vaccines mandated for travel, they hope a standardized digital health pass will allow travelers to avoid restrictive quarantine requirements.
White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said the U.S. government’s focus is “on getting more people vaccinated and we’ll think about how people can demonstrate they are vaccinated as we get more people vaccinated,” when asked about support for a standardized digital health passport on Tuesday.
See more at ABC