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'Immunity passport' to free recovered Chileans from lockdown
By John Bartlett
Santiago: Chilean government officials say they will move ahead with plans to issue the world's first "immunity passports", cards which will allow people who have recovered from the coronavirus to return to work.
The government forged ahead despite concerns of physicians who warned that much about COVID-19 immunity remains unknown.
People wearing protective masks walk through the Plaza de Armas subway station in Santiago, Chile.Credit: Bloomberg
Paula Daza, an undersecretary in the Chilean Health Ministry, said more than 4600 people have recovered from the virus, and will now be eligible to receive physical or digital cards. Card holders will be exempt from quarantines and other restrictions.
Other applicants may be tested for the presence of antibodies to determine eligibility. Details have been sparse, but officials have promised a mass-testing plan, and say cards will be issued to people with a "very high probability" or being non-contagious.
"It's precisely they who can help the community enormously, because they don't present a risk," Health Minister Jaime Mañalich said in announcing the cards last week.
But critics are warning against moving too quickly.
"There are serious doubts over the existence of long-term immunity to this virus, and there was no consultation with the Chilean Immunological Society before this measure was announced," said Cristóbal Cuadrado, the technical secretary for health policy and studies with Chile's medical union. "We have called upon the government to reevaluate the policy and involve experts in the discussion before implementing the scheme."
A person wearing a protective mask pushes a grocery cart through a decontamination chamber at the La Vega Central fruit and vegetable market in Santiago, Chile.Credit: Bloomberg
Chile, which has tested more people than any other country in Latin America, has reported more than 10,500 cases of COVID-19 and 139 deaths. President Sebastián Piñera last month declared a state of catastrophe; there's now a nationwide curfew each night, quarantines in large sections of the capital and other regions, and highway checkpoints to restrict travel.
The government considers patients to no longer be contagious 14 days after acute symptoms have been registered or, in more serious cases, after they are discharged from hospital. For those with weakened immune systems, it's 28 days.
Scientists have questioned the reliability of antibody testing and the durability of immunity. Italy's national health institute says only 10 per cent of Italians have developed antibodies. South Korea's centre for disease control announced that 141 patients tested positive after they appeared to have recovered.
Chilean officials announced last week they would launch the card program on Monday. They have since delayed the rollout until later this week to allow final feasibility checks.
A child watches as people pass through a decontamination chamber at the La Vega Central fruit and vegetable market in Santiago, Chile.Credit: Bloomberg
Piñera's government has warned that the worst of the outbreak is yet to come. The initial wave of cases is expected to peak in May; a second wave is possible in June. The approach of the Southern Hemisphere's winter flu season is expected to further strain the country's already overburdened health system.
Still, officials have pushed for a return to normality, sending government workers back to their offices on Monday and easing some restrictions on movement.
The card program has brought additional concerns: that people who think they might be able to fight the virus would infect themselves to speed their return to work, or that a black market for the cards could develop.
The medical union says the initiative could lead to job discrimination, as employers give preference to cardholders.
The World Health Organisation has kept its distance from the debate over immunity certification, but countries including Germany, Italy and Britain have considered the idea.
The United States has also weighed the idea, according to infectious diseases chief Anthony S. Fauci, but he has urged caution about relying on antibody testing.
Washington Post