News and notes from around the interweb:
- 80% of Americans can get SMART health card QR codes for their vaccination status as a Texas resident who got shots from smaller providers I am not eligible, which is a bummer for travel to Singapore.
- Emirates won’t accept BinaxNOW tests for travel from Dubai to the U.S. even though the U.S. accepts it, and Emirates will accept it for transit and for flights from Athens and Milan to the U.S.
- Northwest Arkansas will give you $10,000 in crypto and a bike for moving there and there’s surprisingly good air service out of XNA in part thanks to Walmart’s headquarters.
- An interesting defense of travel bans they’re stupid, but necessary for any real response to proceed also?
I am far from sure this will prove effective, but it is the kind of security theater you need for the rest of the public health response not to get too caught up with recriminations over this issue. There are some (possible) stupidities you simply need to tolerate.
- The new Hello Kitty hotel in Sanya, China will be a Hyatt JdV property
“We look forward to bringing to life well-loved Sanrio characters in this exciting new project, which will retain a unique identity while providing the JdV by Hyatt brand’s signature guest experience that is inclusive, free-spirited and distinguished by heartfelt and joy-driven service,”
- Texas Monthly profile of the new Southwest Airlines CEO
Too much drama in air travel. I think I will just stay home for the rest of the year.
A few suggestions for the QR code. If you have Clear, they will generate a QR code if you upload your vaccination record. If the provider(s) billed your insurance, your insurance company may have a QR code. United Healthcare does. Also, your provider is legally required to report your vaccination to ImmTrac2, the Texas Immunization Registry. While they don’t provide a QR code, they will provide a record on a paper with a watermark that is more tamper-resistant than the little cards, as long as you haven’t opted out, and you opt in when you ask for a copy. All medical professionals in the state should have access to ImmTrac2 to check vaccination status or report new vaccinations. I can’t say if all providers follow the law on reporting though, some flu shots I expected weren’t there.
Many of the decisions made by elected leaders are about reelect-ability. They wish to be seen as having taken swift and bold action . . . that they are persons of action . . . even when their advisors are telling them something different.
You can entry Singapore without SMART health card if you get “a letter signed by the state, local health authority or vaccination provider to attest to the passenger’s vaccination status”.
More info here: https://safetravel.ica.gov.sg/vtl/faq#QRcode
after the 17th booster ,will i be considered fully vaxxed yet?
To do pretty much anything in France, including riding the trains and other public transport, you need a QR code, but they’re easy enough to get if you present your US COVID vaccination card at certain pharmacies and pay the fee. There is such a pharmacy at CDG, so as soon as you get your bags but before you head to Paris or anywhere else in France via the TGV station, you can get the code. From what I’m reading on the Singapore site, these codes may be good enough, even though you were vaccinated in the US. But just to be sure, I’d investigate further.
I needed a QR code for entry to Egypt in Feb. Live in Tx so a no go there and no code thru the medical facility that did the vax. Finally found a place that validates your info and provides a QR code. Vaxyes by GoGetDoc.com.
NW Arkansas is an amazing place with outstanding schools, great culture and entertainment, some awesome restaurants, and plenty of gorgeous scenery and outdoor activities. Home to several corporate headquarters in addition to Walmart. Highly recommended…
For the longest time all the air service was heavily business related but Allegiant, Frontier and now Breeze have tapped the leisure travel market rising from the area’s increased affluence.
Be prepared – when you fly into XNA, a) it is quite literally in the middle of nowhere and surrounded by cow pastures and b) most ads in the terminals feature very targeted retail tracking/metrics services and specific brands that are eager to get Walmarts attention.
@Julie,
THANK YOU! Like Gary, I was vaccinated by small providers in Texas (and OK). Both have bans on passports. I was honestly considering getting RE-vaccinated at a large chain if there was enough supply and I needed a code because these laws are SO limiting for those of us in these states. I tried your link, and it worked and was FREE. Very VERY helpful. I think I have looked everywhere these past few weeks. Appreciate it!
My stupid state doesn’t allow vaccine passports either and the state health dept does coordinate so we can use the SMART system.
Someone should come up with a way to let us incorporate paper documents into a passport for those held hostage by backward thinking states.
Maybe countries should just not allow vaccine passports. I know at least 25 triple vaxxed people including myself who have had covid in the past few weeks. It’s a terrible system and I will do my best to avoid any place that requires it
Vaccine passports are simply the gateway to a social credit system like China. Without these vaccine passports, there is no way Americans would willfully agree to track themselves with this info stored on a shared govt database.
Why anyone wants to live under a CCP-type regime is beyond me,