
Vaccine passport apps could help us return to normal. First they need to solve the trust problem
CNN
The next time you attend a wedding or concert, visit a place of worship, eat indoors at a restaurant or even go to work, you may need to show digital proof of vaccination or negative Covid-19 test results.
On Friday, New York became the first state in the United States to roll out a vaccine verification app, often referred to as a digital vaccine passport. It's using IBM's Excelsior Pass app, which leans on the blockchain and displays a personalized QR code to verify health status. The state tested the app earlier this month at a Brooklyn Nets basketball game at the Barclays Center and a New York Rangers hockey game at Madison Square Garden. Vaccine verification apps could play a key role in helping us get back to normal. But the companies behind them may first need to convince millions of Americans -- scarred from years of headlines about data scandals -- that these apps don't pose significant privacy risks.
President Donald Trump said Tuesday that he plans to phase out the Federal Emergency Management Agency after this year’s hurricane season, offering the clearest timeline yet for his administration’s long-term plans to dismantle the disaster relief agency and shift responsibility for response and recovery onto states.

Rep. LaMonica McIver indicted on federal charges after incident at New Jersey ICE detention facility
Democratic Rep. LaMonica McIver was indicted Tuesday on federal charges alleging she impeded and interfered with immigration officers outside a New Jersey detention center while Newark’s mayor was being arrested after he tried to join a congressional oversight visit at the facility.