harrisburg vaccine passports being developed to verify covid19 immunization status and allow inoculated people to more freely travel shop and dine have become the latest flash point in americas perpetual political wars with republicans portraying them as a heavyhanded intrusion into personal freedom and private health choices they currently exist in only one state a limited government partnership in new york with a private company but that hasnt stopped gop lawmakers in a handful of states from rushing out legislative proposals to ban their use the argument over whether passports are a sensible response to the pandemic or governmental overreach echoes the bitter disputes over the past year about masks shutdown orders and even the vaccines themselves vaccine passports are typically an app with a code that verifies whether someone has been vaccinated or recently tested negative for covid19 they are in use in israel and under development in parts of europe seen as a way to safely help rebuild the pandemic devastated travel industry they are intended to allow businesses to more safely open up as the vaccine drive gains momentum and they mirror measures already in place for schools and overseas travel that require proof of immunization against various diseases but lawmakers around the country are already taking a stand against the idea gop senators in pennsylvania are drawing up legislation that would prohibit vaccine passports also known as health certificates or travel passes from being used to bar people from routine activities we have constitutional rights and health privacy laws for a reason said pennsylvania house majority leader kerry benninghoff a republican they should not cease to exist in a time of crisis these passports may start with covid19 but where will they end benninghoff said this week his concern was using taxpayer money to generate a system that will now be possibly in the hands of megatech organizations whove already had problems with getting hacked and security issues a democratic colleague rep chris rabb of philadelphia sees value in vaccine passports if they are implemented carefully theres a role for using technology and other means to confirm peoples statuses rabb said but we do have concerns around privacy surveillance and inequitable access republican legislators in other states have also been drafting proposals to ban or limit them a bill introduced in the arkansas legislature on wednesday would prevent government officials from requiring vaccine passports for any reason and would ban their use as a condition of entry travel education employment or services the sponsor republican state sen trent garner called vaccine passports just another example of the biden administration using covid19 to put regulations or restrictions on everyday americans president joe bidens administration has largely taken a handsoff approach on vaccine passports at a news conference this week andy slavitt acting administrator of the centers for medicare and medicaid services said he considered them a project for the private sector not the government he said the government is considering federal guidelines to steer the