A scoping review of global vaccine certificate solutions for COVID-19

Abstract

Background: Globally, measures such as lockdown, quarantining, and physical distancing have been implemented to curb the spread of COVID-19. As the vaccines are now available and reintegration into society is beginning, measures such as vaccine certificates are being implemented around the world.Objective: The objective of the scoping review is to identify the existing digital solutions available globally for COVID-19 vaccine certificates and evaluate them on the basis of purpose and use case, technological architecture, and ethical and legal implications.Methods: We conducted a Google search as well as a search of Embase, Ovid MEDLINE and preprint servers (MedRXIV, BioRXIV). The search terms used were “coronavirus”, “COVID-19”, “SARS COV2”, “immunization passport”, “immunization certificate”, “vaccine certificate”, “vaccination certificate” and “digital”. Articles were included for review if they included any discussion of a digital solution for vaccine certificates and English language. Data was extracted using an electronic data extraction form and included date, location, type of article, source, companies identified, technology used, type of evidence provided, digital architecture, security and privacy measures, and use cases. The articles were categorized based on the following six pre-identified themes: 1) legal, 2) technology, 3) ethics, 4) travel, 5) policy, and 6) science. Results: A total of 70 articles were included in the final analysis. Technology emerged as the most dominant theme, appearing in 58.5% (n=41) articles followed by ethics (n=22, 31%), travel (n=21, 30%), legal concerns (n=10, 14%), public policy (n=9, 13%), and scientific concerns (n=1, 1.5%. Our review identified 8 global solutions that are working towards COVID-19 vaccine certificate, all optimizing blockchain technology. COVID-19 vaccine certificates are being considered in 13 countries and are in place in 3 countries. All the solutions we identified are using blockchain technology.Conclusion: Several countries have implemented or are considering COVID-19 vaccine certificates. Many issues concerning the themes we identified remain to be addressed to facilitate successful implementation.

NovidChain: Blockchain‐based privacy‐preserving platform for COVID‐19 test/vaccine certificates

“…In particular, Blockchain details as well as users' self‐sovereignty details are not available. To date (March 2021), only the Estonia VaccineGuard app is in the pilot stage, the other solutions are currently under development or in the consideration stage 40 …”

“…To date (March 2021), only the Estonia VaccineGuard app is in the pilot stage, the other solutions are currently under development or in the consideration stage. 40 A limited number of academic works taking in consideration COVID-19 certificates have been proposed, most of them were high-level sketches. 41 We think that there have been only two academic work for antibody credential systems that have presented a detailed specification for their work.…”

Vaccine Verification in the COVID-19 World

“…5 For this reason, many states, including California, New York, and Colorado, and private companies have developed a digital platform to show proof of COVID-19 vaccine status and test results for domestic and international travel, while European nations have adopted similar systems ( Table 1 ). 5 , 6 , 7 , 8 , 9 However, these applications vary in quality. Likewise, the existence of different public and private, domestic and international platforms present challenges to ensuring that individuals do not need to sign up for multiple databases for different activities.…”

“… LA Wallet 6 Louisiana Government and Envoc Louisiana Proof of COVID-19 vaccination. Green Pass 7 Government Israel Proof of COVID-19 vaccination, and recovery from COVID-19 for domestic travel My COVID Pass 7 Africa's Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, PanaBIOS Consortium, and Econet Group Africa Proof of COVID-19 vaccination and COVID-19 test results Digital Green Certificate 5 European Union Council European Union Member States Proof of COVID-19 vaccination, COVID-19 test results, and COVID-19 recovery for international travel COVID-19 Passport “Coronapas” 8 Government Denmark Proof of COVID-19 vaccination and COVID-19 test results for domestic travel VaccineGuard 9 Guardtime Estonia, Iceland, and Hungary Proof of COVID-19 vaccination for domestic and international travel ArriveCan 6 Government Canada Proof of COVID-19 vaccination and COVID-19 test results for international travel Travel Pass 6 International Air Transport Association Global Proof of COVID-19 vaccination and COVID-19 test results VeriFLY 6 VeriFLY Global Proof of COVID-19 vaccination and COVID-19 test results Smart Vaccination Certificate 7 World Health Organization Global Proof of COVID-19 vaccination for domestic (e.g., sporting events or college campuses) or international travel …”

The influencing factors of digital health passport adoption and acceptance during COVID-19 in Saudi Arabia

“…CommonPass Application is a health data app created by The Commons Project and the World Economic Forum to make cross-border travel more accessible. 13 Common Pass is defined by Mithani et al 21 as a DHP app, which you can use to show proof that you were vaccinated or tested negative for COVID-19; it is one example offered to over 37 governments. In addition, it has been tried by United Airlines and Cathay Pacific Airlines to demonstrate how easy it is to retrieve your test results and vaccination records and show your COVID-19 health status when needed.…”