Maryland’s concerns about vaccination data is roadblock to counties’ passport plans

Efforts to create a COVID-19 vaccination passport system are being stymied by the state, according to some county officials.

Leaders in two Maryland counties say they want to use a vaccination verification system. But the state has rebuffed requests for access to its vaccination records — so far at least — which has hobbled plans to move forward with a passport program.

“We have taken a lot of time to work and think through the technical, privacy, operational, and other implications of permitting outside access to ImmuNet,” said Charles Gischlar, a spokesman for the Maryland Department of Health. “At this time, we are respectfully declining such requests.”

Vaccine passports are the latest proposal driven by the pandemic. State and local governments are scrambling to find ways of protecting public health and increasing vaccination rates.

“We want to make sure we have something that is accurate and functional,” said Earl Stoddard, the director of emergency management for Montgomery County, one of two state counties that has expressed interest in vaccine passports.

Stoddard holds a doctorate in molecular biology and a master’s in public health related to infectious diseases.

“We really are wanting to avoid the restrictions and limits on gatherings that we had in the last year,” he said. “The vaccine passport model is something that would potentially allow us to avoid those things if COVID conditions get worse.”

President Joe Biden’s announcement last week may add more pressure. Under a new federal mandate, businesses with 100 or more workers are required to implement a vaccination or test policy for employees.

No national standard exists for vaccine passports. The president has rejected a national program. Other options are seen as easily falsified or cumbersome to verify.

That leaves state and local governments and employers to find their own way.

Montgomery County Executive Marc Elrich was the first local government leader to announce interest in a passport program.

“I’d like Montgomery County to have the reputation that this is a safe place to be,” Elrich said Wednesday, adding that it would give businesses the ability to attract customers. “I can’t think of anything but benefit that a local business can advertise and say with authority that the people who are on the premises are vaccinated and that this is a safe place to be.”

But two weeks after announcing his intentions, Elrich’s plan remains an unseen draft proposal. The plan is modeled on New York City’s program, according to Stoddard.

Such a program would likely become a de facto vaccination mandate for some businesses, he said.

“That’s a huge differential we need to address, and we’re waiting on the data collection on our employee data to understand how far away we are from that fully vaccinated level,” said Stoddard.

The county executive said the state is hampering his efforts and perhaps preventing other jurisdictions from joining Montgomery County.

“I think other people are going to think about it the longer this goes on,” said Elrich. “We also know from pre-discussions with (other jurisdictions) that people were not ready to go there.”

Elrich said he won’t send his proposal to the Montgomery County Council, which sits as the county Board of Health, until “we’re able to implement it.”

Anne Arundel County is also considering a passport system. The intent, according to County Executive Steuart Pittman, is to give the county a way to verify the vaccination status of its employees. It could also be made available to county businesses that wish to voluntarily implement a vaccination policy.

Pittman in July ordered all county employees to be vaccinated or provide weekly negative tests. Pittman is offering a $1,000 incentive to every fully vaccinated county government employee.

Pittman’s vaccination or test policy has been delayed until November to assess the success of the incentives, according to a spokesman.

New York City was the first to announce a passport requirement in August. For its part, New York state announced it would use IBM’s Excelsior Pass, which displays vaccination information. The program also might allow some businesses to retain some information when an individual’s passport is scanned.

Locally some businesses such as Merriweather Post Pavilion require customers to provide proof of vaccination or a recent negative test. There are concerns, however, about the rise of counterfeit vaccination cards.

Maryland residents already have access to an online system that tracks vaccinations, including those not related to COVID-19. The MyIR.net system is also available on phones.

Stoddard said options like MyIR.net are acceptable, but a third-party passport system would ensure that the documents belong to the people presenting them.

“I don’t think it’s necessary to do something that does that cross-referencing of identity and vaccination status on the front end to expedite the review process that’s occurring at the business level. It certainly makes it much more palatable from a business perspective and less operationally intrusive for how they operate their businesses,” he said.

Stoddard called the state’s decision to deny access to the vaccination data a technical problem that won’t ultimately stop the county from some form of a passport program.

‘I don’t view the technical details as preventing you from implementing it,” said Stoddard.