by Donald Wood
Last updated: 10:10 AM ET, Mon May 3, 2021
A new poll suggests that most Americans and Canadians support the concept of developing a "vaccine passport" to help reopen international travel.
According to a new Ipsos survey, 71 percent of United States citizens believe that all international tourists arriving in the country should be required to show proof of receiving a full COVID-19 vaccination.
Another 61 percent of Americans said the vaccine passports would be effective in making travel and large events safe, which is a drop from the 73 percent worldwide average.
In Canada, 78 percent of respondents believe in requiring the vaccine passports and 72 percent said they would help keep tourists and locals safe from another potential coronavirus surge.
"Canadians need to be able to have the right kind of certification for international travel because, as we know, Canadians will want to travel internationally, and they will want to make sure they have the right credentials to do that from a vaccination perspective," Canadian Health Minister Patty Hajdu told CBC Radio.
Last month, U.S. President Joe Biden and his administration said the country has no plans to introduce a universal vaccine passport system as part of an effort to protect the privacy and rights of citizens.
White House press secretary Jen Psaki revealed there would be no federal vaccinations database, nor would Americans be forced to obtain a single vaccination credential.
"The government is not now, nor will be, supporting a system that requires Americans to carry a credential," Psaki told BBC.com. "Our interest is very simple from the federal government, which is Americans' privacy and rights should be protected, and so that these systems are not used against people unfairly."
The European Union recently announced it would welcome American tourists this summer who've been fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and revealed officials were working on a coronavirus certification program-vaccine passports-to help restart international tourism.
Last week, France said it was preparing to reopen its borders to Americans and all other non-European Union travelers starting June 9 under a new four-step plan outlined by President Emmanuel Macron designed to lift the country's partial lockdown.
For the latest travel news, updates and deals, subscribe to the daily TravelPulse newsletter.
Topics From This Article to Explore
