Is there a way to make vaccine passports ethically acceptable? | Alexis Papazoglou

If we are to offer more freedom to some UK citizens, there must be alternative options for those who have not been vaccinated

It’s the great British summer, lockdown is lifted and you’ve finally been fully vaccinated. You’re filled with a huge sense of relief. Vaccines are a game changer, not only because they drastically reduce your chances of getting ill with Covid-19, but because, as the evidence is beginning to show, they prevent the spread of the virus in the first place. Now you can finally have a drink in a bar without the uncomfortable feeling that you’re putting yourself and others at risk. But what if the person ordering drinks next to you and the bartender haven’t been vaccinated? Well, at least your elderly relative has had their jabs a while back – that gives you peace of mind. But what if the person responsible for their everyday care has refused the vaccine? No matter, the UK population at large is close to developing herd immunity. But what about all the people arriving in the UK daily from other countries – are they vaccinated?

Vaccine passports are supposed to be an answer to these worries: the government issues immunity certificates to those who have been inoculated, which would in turn allow them to take part freely and safely in various activities forbidden to those who don’t have them. The moral justification for such a policy seems similar to the justification for lockdown measures: John Stuart Mill’s harm principle. The 19th-century English philosopher was a liberal; freedom was one of the moral and political values he cherished the most, yet he recognised that it should have limits. Mill’s harm principle suggests the government is justified in curtailing our freedom when our behaviour harms others. Most people approve of lockdowns because they recognise the moral reasoning behind them: our freedom has to be limited to prevent others from getting ill and possibly dying. By the same logic, if not being vaccinated means posing a greater threat to others, it seems vaccine passports would be justified. At least in theory.

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Coronavirus | The Guardian

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