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Healthcare, tech companies to launch COVID-19 vaccine tool

The Vaccine Credential Initiative, a group composed of health and technology companies such as Microsoft and Kansas City-based Cerner, is testing a digital tool it hopes to launch mid-summer that would provide people access to a trustworthy and verifiable copy of their vaccination records.

The Vaccination Credential Initiative, a collective of organizations including Cerner, Epic and Microsoft, hopes to begin testing its co-developed COVID-19 vaccine digital passport technology this spring.

The Vaccine Credential Initiative announced its project Jan. 14 and is building a digital tool that will let people show proof of vaccination before traveling or attending live, in-person events. 

Cerner and its biggest EHR competitor, Epic, have teamed up with the other organizations to create the universal application, which they are designing to share data regardless of a patient’s healthcare provider or location. Other participants include Rochester, Minn.-based Mayo Clinic, Salesforce, Change Healthcare and Oracle. 

The initiative aims to develop a tool that provides people with an encrypted copy of immunization records that can be stored on a digital wallet. For people without smartphones, the Vaccination Credential Initiative is exploring methods such as paper cards printed with QR codes, which can be validated electronically.  

The group hopes to begin testing the technology this spring and may launch it by mid-summer.