‘Vaccine Passport’ to Offer Quarantine Alternative

Big Island Now stock photo.

The state of Hawai‘i is closing in on a new paradigm that would allow vaccinated people travel both to and throughout the islands absent the threat of quarantine.

First reported by Hawaii News Now, the “Vaccine Passport” will free up mainland and international travelers to bypass the state’s 10-day quarantine requirements, including pre-travel testing, if they have been fully vaccinated. That would require two shots for the currently approved vaccines produced by Pfizer and Moderna.

Lieutenant Governor Josh Green told HNN Monday that the program will likely start as early as March with Hawaii’s essential workers. It will then expand to the general public down the line.

Green added he is hopeful the program will include mainland travel by May 1.

New vaccine purchases by the US government and expanded roll out programs optimistically target the vaccination of up to 300 million Americans by the end of summer or early fall.

Coupled with a “Vaccine Passport,” this level of vaccination could theoretically allow for the return of mass tourism from the US mainland before year’s end. Roadblocks to this immediate future include the potential development of drug-resistant mutations of COVID-19 and/or an unwillingness to receive inoculation from a significant portion of the population.