Germany on Thursday began rolling out a digital vaccination pass that can be used throughout Europe as the continent will get ready for the key summer travel season.
The nation’s health minister mentioned beginning this week vaccination centers, doctors’ practices, and pharmacies will gradually begin giving out digital passes to fully vaccinated individuals. The “CovPass” will let users download proof of their coronavirus vaccination status onto a smartphone app, permitting them easy access to restaurants, museums, or other venues that require proof of immunization.
The vaccination passport should be available to everyone in Germany who’s fully vaccinated by the end of this month, Health Minister Jens Spahn mentioned.
“The goal is that this certificate can also be used in Helsinki, Amsterdam, or Mallorca,” Spahn informed reporters in Berlin.
Individuals who have been fully vaccinated will either get a letter with a QR-code they can scan with their phones or they can contact their doctors or pharmacies to retroactively get the digital go.
“By doing so, we within the European Union are setting a cross-border standard that doesn’t exist elsewhere in the world yet,” Spahn mentioned, adding that the digital vaccination pass is an important step for the revival of international tourism.
The nation’s disease control agency, the Robert Koch Institute, reported Thursday that 47% of the population, or about 39.1 million individuals, have gotten one shot. Almost 24%, or 19.9 million individuals, are fully vaccinated.
On Wednesday, almost 1.3 million individuals received a vaccine jab, the second-highest everyday number ever.
Additionally, Thursday, Germany’s Committee on vaccinations, known as Stiko, recommended that children aged 12 to 15 only receive the shot if they’ve sure illnesses such as obesity, chronic lung, or heart disease, dpa reported. Healthy teenagers can, however, also be vaccinated if they, their parents and doctors decide to do so.
The German panel’s opinion differs from the European Medicines Agency, which last month recommended expanding the use of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine to children 12 to 15, a decision that offers younger and less at-risk populations across the continent access to a COVID-19 shot for the first time.
The head of Stiko, Thomas Mertens, mentioned while youths are very well protected by the vaccine, only a few children and teenagers had participated in medical studies and possible severe side effects may therefore not be excluded.
Mertens mentioned the recommendation was also based on the fact that very few children fall severely ill with COVID-19 versus older individuals.
