The Domestic Vaccination Passport Debate

Should Jamaica adopt a domestic vaccination passport? And if it is adopted, what are the practical and ethical implications for society at large? Could people be disenfranchised as a result of the move?

Dr. Al Bailey, Associate Professor at UTECH, in Public and Operational Health, and Dr. Alfred Dawe, General Laparoscopic and Weight Loss Surgeon, joined the CVM Live Panel Discussion to share on the topic.

Dr. Bailey noted that the issue of domestic vaccination passport has recently raising major concerns, he noted that in the UK it is being assessed that the original immunization card maybe insufficient for travel and entrance into the country. Bailey defines a vaccination passport as a documentation that allows a person to enter a foreign territory on the basis that they are vaccinated against diseases that the country deems necessary.

Meanwhile, in a response to whether or not COVID-19 should be mandated as one of the viruses children should be vaccinated against; Dr. Dawe says while it does decrease the spread of the virus in schools once the other protocols are adhered, data shows that the protection for children under the age of 12 is very minimal and therefore it will pose a problem to make this a criteria when some children still can not be vaccinated.