HARTFORD, Conn. — Editor's Note: The video above was published on Dec. 15, 2021.
The highly talked about digital COVID-19 vaccination cards are now available for Connecticut residents who want to store their records on their smartphone devices.
The digital cards, known as “SMART Health Cards,” will mirror the paper cards the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) gives out to patients upon being vaccinated against COVID-19.
“If you don’t want to carry your paper card around with you in your pocket, or if you lost your card, then you can digitally load it onto your smartphone,” Gov. Ned Lamont said in a statement Monday. “If you don’t have a smartphone or don’t want to digitize your paper card, then you don’t have to, and you can keep using the paper card you were given when you were vaccinated. This option is just about more convenience for Connecticut residents.”
The governor stressed that the choice to digitize vaccination records onto the SMAR Health Cards is strictly optional.
The SMART Health Cards will display a QR cord that can be scanned to confirm a person’s vaccination status. The governor said these digital cards will be harder to forge than paper ones.
Other states, like New York and California, have adopted similar digital health cards to verify vaccination statuses. Massachusetts, Rhode Island and other states are expected to launch programs soon.
The digital system uses CT WiZ, Connecticut’s immunization information system, to confirm a person’s vaccination status. Instructions on how to load the digital cards click here.
For several days, the governor has been touting the digital health cards, however, it has sparked concerns about privacy about who gets to see this information and how it will be used.
Lamont told FOX61 News last week that the information on the CT WiZ system will not be shared with anyone.
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