COVID-19 Vaccine Passports: Human Rights and the Need for Pro-Ethical Design

Since the first case was reported to the World Health Organisation in December 2019, SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) has caused social and economic devastation on a scale not seen since World War 2. As the milestone of 2 years of ‘living with the virus’ approaches, Governments and businesses are desperate to develop interventions that can facilitate the reopening of society whilst still protecting public health. As the roll-out of COVID-19 vaccinations has gathered pace worldwide, particularly in wealthier countries, those responsible for developing such interventions have begun to focus on the use of digital ‘COVID-19 Vaccine Passports’, which can be used to prove that an individual has had an approved COVID-19 vaccination (both doses where applicable). Governments hope that Vaccine Passports may be used to facilitate international travel and permit increased domestic liberties, for example allowing people to access public venues, to attend large gatherings, or to return to work without compromising personal safety and public health. “Yellow Fever certificates”, required to enter a specific list of countries maintained by the World Health Organisation, provide a precedent for this type of intervention. However, there are concerns that the use of COVID-19 Vaccine Passports could be viewed as a mechanism for introducing a mandatory vaccination policy, and there are also concerns that due to issues related to the unequal global distribution of effective vaccines and ‘the digital divide’ their use could exacerbate inequalities. Here we discuss the ethical and human rights implications of COVID-19 vaccine passports, based on a systematised literature review and documentary analysis. We find that in the context of a global public health emergency, COVID-19 vaccine passports (or, as we discuss, the broader status passes) are ethically and legally permissible under relevant human rights and international health regulations, provided they are designed, implemented, and used in accordance with the least infringement principle and the value of equality. We then set out 18 concrete recommendations for supranational bodies, national governments, and businesses to help ensure they develop and deploy COVID-19 Vaccine Passports accordingly.