CDC Says Goodbye to COVID Vaccine Cards

COVID-19 vaccine cards, items that quickly became a central image of the pandemic, will be phased out.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) will sunset the little white cards, according to its website. Because COVID vaccine mandates for travel and other activities have been phased out almost entirely worldwide, they may no longer be needed.

“Your state’s IIS [Immunization Information System] cannot issue you a vaccination card, but they can provide a digital or paper copy of your full vaccination record, including your COVID-19 vaccinations,” the CDC wrote on Tuesday.

The cards, which include a person’s name, date of birth, the type and lot number of the shot and date received. They were used as an easy way to prove that a person was fully vaccinated. A typical card came with four slots — two for the initial vaccine regimen and two for boosters.

Without a centralized database of who received COVID-19 vaccines, the cards were valuable tools for keeping track of the shots.

“Unfortunately, there is no national organization that maintains vaccination records. The CDC does not have this information,” the CDC wrote on its website. “The records that exist are the ones you or your parents were given when the vaccines were administered.”

When vaccines were initially rolled out, and many restrictions were still in place, some people who did not want to receive the shots, but still wanted to travel or attend events with vaccine mandates, resorted to forging the cards. There are reports of a black market forming for fake versions of the card that a person can fill out themselves.

On the opposite side of the market, many manufacturers were also quick to jump at the opportunity to sell specialized card holders, as the cards themselves were often just slightly too large to fold into a standard wallet. 

While the cards are being phased out, the COVID-19 vaccines remain available and officials still recommend Americans to receive them. The CDC and Food and Drug Administration (FDA) both approved a new set of shots ahead of this flu season. It is expected that COVID boosters will become an annual shot similar to that of the flu, with a new vaccine being rolled out each year.