Just like Green, Kemble said it is still critically important to use common sense, wear a mask, and socially distance. “Our hope would be that if we have vaccinated the most vulnerable in our population to a high degree, that we see less rise in hospitalization and deaths accompanying a rise in cases,” she added. “And we just moved into tier 3 in Honolulu so there’s been a little bit of relaxation around restaurants, some of the other settings.” Hawaii is working towards a vaccination passport for travelers coming in. “I think it is likely we’ll see some uptick in cases following spring break with all the travel that’s going on and because we are learning that some of these variants that have made their way here do spread more quickly,” Kemble said. The Kilauea volcano on Hawaii’s Big Island erupted late on Sunday, December 20, the Hawaii Volcanoes National Park said. Over the last few weeks, the California, UK and South Africa variants among others have been detected in Hawai‘i, according to Kemble. Kemble said the state laboratory can test up to 75 specimens per week for whole-genome sequencing-a representative sample of the variants found in Hawaii. “I think really right now, it’s variants versus how quickly we can get herd immunity vaccine coverage,” acting state epidemiologist Dr. National companies like CommonPass, VeriFLY, and Clear are already working to develop vaccine tracking systems, he said. “But even so, backing it up with technology is good for convenience and we’re working on this,” Green said. Requiring people to show a signed vaccination card is another avenue that Green mentioned, and those who break the rule would be subject to a $5,000 fine and a year in jail. “What sounds pretty simple is actually quite complicated especially if you're talking about multiple states, multiple systems.” “They have to have the technology to be able to look into databases that are just showing whether or not a person’s been vaccinated and match that with their identifiers like their name and birthdate,” Green told Hawai‘i Public Radio. “As public health goes, this is the way.”Īccording to Green, the state is in touch with a couple of companies about setting up a vaccination passport system. “If everyone’s immune, then you don’t have to worry about an outbreak,” Green said.

Green indicated the passport system would not only help open up travel but also events like weddings and marathons. “We’ll still tell them to wear masks, there’s no question. A proven vaccination is a better way to show one’s safety and health than a pretest, which worked when that was all that was available, he said.

Hawaii vaccine passport news