By Suzanne Potter
This story was originally published by Public News Service
CARSON CITY–There’s a new way to show you’re vaccinated for COVID-19, without having to keep track of a pesky vaccine card, using a free QR code you can download from your account via the Nevada Department of Health and Human Services online portal.
You can save the QR code as a digital file on your phone.
Kristy Zigenis, COVID-19 program manager for the Nevada State Immunization Program, said businesses or events requiring proof of vaccination for admission can use a special program to decode the file.
“That QR code will show the requesting individual’s COVID-19 vaccination record,” Zigenis explained. “Which includes the type of vaccine received, the date, the vaccine location and the individual’s legal name and date of birth.”
Many people are familiar with QR codes that link to a webpage, such as a restaurant menu, when you focus your cellphone camera on it. The SMART Health QR Code is protected through cryptography and can only be read by companies with a special decoding app from the state.
People access their own data with a two-factor authentication system via Nevada WebIZ, which is the portal for the statewide immunization information system. The web address is IZrecord.nv.gov.
Zigenis noted this is just a way for people to manage and store their own medical records.
“Lots of people have misplaced their COVID vaccine card or the state printout is not accepted as an official record, although we identify it as an official record,” Zigenis outlined. “This is just an alternative to that for specific travel needs or certain venues that require it for large gatherings.”
Data accessed via a new SMART Health QR Code is considered an official State of Nevada digital record for those who received vaccines in the state.
