Quebec is starting to test a smartphone application that will run the vaccine passport system the government plans to impose across the province on September 1.
Health Minister Christian Dubé said two days of testing will begin today (August 11) at sports bars and restaurants in Quebec City, adding that the application will be tested the following week over two days at a gym in the Montreal area.
The passport software would be used in settings with a high degree of contact, such as festivals, bars, restaurants and gyms.
As recently as July 23, Minister Dubé had said the Quebec government would impose a vaccine passport system only in areas of the province where COVID-19 transmission was high. He had said that young people getting vaccinated would determine whether the government would need to use the passports.
Asked what had changed to lead to the province-wide imposition of the passport on September 1, Minister Dubé said "the variant," referring to the more contagious Delta variant of the coronavirus.
Bar and restaurant owners will be required to download a smartphone application that can read a quick-response code — known as a QR code — sent to people who have been vaccinated.
Customers will be forced to download a separate application in order to attend public events such as festivals or to drink at bars. Those who don't have smartphones can use a paper version of the QR code.
The minister said the applications will not gather user data. "There will be no link between a database, it's only a reading application — that's it," he said.
Minister Dubé said he plans to co-ordinate with the governments of Ontario and other neighbouring provinces to ensure that the proof of vaccination issued in their province can be recognized in Quebec. He said his government will also work with Ottawa to ensure fully vaccinated Americans travelling to Quebec can patronize the province's bars and restaurants.
Some details of the vaccine passport still have to be worked out, including how not to deprive people who have medical conditions preventing them from being vaccinated from eating at restaurants.
Quebec reported seven more people in hospital with COVID-19 Tuesday, the highest single-day rise in hospitalizations linked to the coronavirus since mid-May. Health officials said 62 people were in hospital with the disease and 18 were in intensive care. Officials also reported 234 new infections, but no more deaths linked to COVID-19.
They said 40,691 doses of vaccine were administered in the past 24 hours, and the province's public health institute said 84.8 per cent of residents 12 and over have received at least one dose of vaccine and 72.2 per cent are considered fully vaccinated.
