I HOPE a reasonable travel policy for the fully vaccinated is released after the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) meeting on Thursday afternoon, which unfortunately is too late for me to wait for but am not expecting it given the announcement on Tuesday retaining the use of face shields.

In the many interviews given by government officials on this quarantine for the fully vaccinated, the repeated comment is that while accepting the efficacy of vaccines, what is holding them back from extending the benefits to those vaccinated outside the Philippines is verification that the person is actually fully vaccinated. I'm happy to have read that they are consulting Israeli officials since Israel allows quarantine-free entry after an antibody test. Without repeating the arguments and proposals already made and offered, let me pose one simple point - if it is true that all they want is certainty of verification, then immediately allow travelers who got vaccinated in New York or California in. New York has the state government-provided digital verification called the Excelsior Pass that was developed by IBM. Then last June 19, the Department of Public Health and Technology of California unveiled the 'Digital Covid-19 Vaccination Record' portal. So there! There are government-provided and verified digital vaccination records for those vaccinated in New York and California. If the IATF needs more time for other places, then why not start at least with those given how many Filipinos there are in those two states. I have my Excelsior Pass with verified bar code and so on, and I know what information I had to send to get the verification from New York state on my fully vaccinated status and need not rely solely on the paper CDC card. On June 21, Hong Kong announced that except for very high-risk countries, quarantine for the fully vaccinated is seven days. From previously only allowing citizens, residents and those working or studying in Hong Kong to enter, they will now allow fully vaccinated visitors as well. Note that the vaccination level in Hong Kong is also low. How will they verify? Like Israel, through an antibody test. Also see the New York Times article on June 20, 'Wondering if the vaccine worked? Get the right test at the right time.' Verification of status seems to be a mystery for the Philippines. Hong Kong, Israel, the entire European Union and other jurisdictions seem to have no need to wait for uniform verification. An antibody test for the spike protein provides the verification.