Residents of the state can use quick response codes to prove that they have received their shots.
Residents of Virginia can now use QR code verification to prove that they have received their COVID-19 vaccination, requiring a simple barcode scan to confirm.
The Virginia Department of Health announced the use of the barcodes for vaccination record access.
The QR code verification option was rolled out to provide straight forward and quick access to vaccination records for COVID-19 shots. In this way, Virginians won’t need to carry around the paper documentation. Moreover, since the barcodes can be scanned with a smartphone camera app, it means that there won’t be any need to download a special app either to store the vaccination records or to view them.
The Virginia Department of Health said that quick response codes used for this purpose contain their digital signature. As a result, those barcodes cannot be altered or forged. This allows employers and businesses to scan the codes and feel confident that they are seeing the legitimate vaccination status of the individual. The barcode can be scanned by employers and businesses using the free SMART Health Verifier App.
The QR code verification is possible for anyone with a vaccination record with an active phone number.
The vaccination record must match the phone number and must be within the Virginia Immunization Information System. According to the Virginia Department of Health, every dose that has been administered within the state is registered within that statewide system. This includes the doses that were administered at physicians’ offices and pharmacies.
That said, it should be noted that the shots administered by the Department of Veterans Affairs or by the Department of Defense have not been reported to the state system as they are reported elsewhere. If the records cannot be retrieved automatically, the state has provided a toll-free phone number through which residents can receive assistance.
All phone users need to do to obtain their QR code verification barcode is to head to the official vaccinate.virginia.gov website. Once the barcode has been obtained, simply save that photo to the phone’s photo gallery, store it elsewhere that it is easily accessible on the device, and/or print it out.
