Source: MIL-OSI Submissions
Source: Good Health Pass Collaborative
April 19, 202,1 SAN FRANCISCO, CA – In a letter addressed to Prime Minister Scott Morrison (attached), the Good Health Pass Collaborative today offered its support and collaboration as the government considers the role that digital health passes might play in enabling Australians to safely resume international travel and other aspects of public life.
The letter comes on the heels of a statement by the PM last week indicating that the government does not intend to extend “travel bubbles” beyond New Zealand in the foreseeable future.
In February, ID2020 announced the launch of the Good Health Pass Collaborative, a global, multi-sector initiative to establish guiding principles and open standards for digital health pass systems that are privacy-protecting, user-controlled, equitable, globally interoperable, and universally accepted for international travel.
“I recognize the immense responsibility that you bear for safeguarding the health of 24 million Australians,” wrote ID2020 executive director, Dakota Gruener. “At the same time, I know that we are united in our desire to see the safe resumption of travel and tourism and a safe and incremental return to public life. I believe these objectives are not mutually exclusive.”
The Collaborative recently released its first white paper, entitled Good Health Pass: A Safe Path to Global Reopening, which outlines the principles that must underpin the development of all digital health pass systems – whether for proof of vaccination or test results.
In June, the Collaborative will release two further publications; the Good Health Pass Interoperability Blueprint and the Governance Framework Recommendations. These publications will offer guidance for policymakers and implementing agencies – as well as for companies that are developing digital health pass solutions. They will define the path to the technical and operational interoperability that is critical if digital health passes are to be broadly adopted by individuals and universally accepted by relying parties, such as airlines and border control agencies.
Interoperability is the product of open standards and collaboration between competitors who see it as in their common interest. The Good Health Pass Collaborative was established, in part, to facilitate this sort of collaboration and as a means to streamline the process for developing standards, which can often take years or decades.
“One of the things that makes this effort unique is that the Collaborative is neither developing nor promoting a specific product or technical solution,” said Gruener. “Rather, we have brought together more than 100 global companies and organizations – many of them, competitors – from across the travel, health, and technology sectors. We are proud that all of the major health pass solution providers are participating and grateful for their contributions to this historic and urgent effort.”
The Good Health Pass Collaborative hopes to work collaboratively with the government and representatives of the appropriate ministries to ensure that digital health passes achieve their desired objectives and do so while simultaneously protecting privacy rights, civil liberties, and promoting health equity for all Australians.
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About ID2020
ID2020 is a global public-private partnership that harnesses the collective power of nonprofits, corporations, and governments to promote the adoption and ethical implementation of user-managed, privacy-protecting, and portable digital identity solutions.
By developing and applying rigorous technical standards to certify identity solutions, providing advisory services and implementing programs, and advocating for the ethical implantation of digital ID, ID2020 is strengthening social and economic development globally.
The Good Health Pass Collaborative is a project of ID2020.