These bracelets help restaurant workers show they got their Covid-19 vaccine
A Philadelphia restaurant is trying to make customers feel more comfortable by making clear its employees are vaccinated.
Most of the staff members at El Merkury sport a blue silicone bracelet with a QR code linking to proof of Covid-19 vaccination, according to CNN affiliate WPVI.
The owner of El Merkury, Sofia Deleon, told WPVI she made the move so customers would know it was safe to eat from her restaurant.
“It was really important for me to have everybody be vaccinated, to have everyone come back to work and feel safe,” Deleon said.
Wearers have to upload their vaccination cards for review before they can receive the band. The documentation is stored on a server compliant with medical privacy laws and the process is end-to-end encrypted, the company said in a news release.
The company makes two bands — one with just the QR code and another with the QR code plus the wearer’s name and type of vaccine they received. That code can be scanned with a smartphone to prove vaccination, the company said.
ImmunaBand President Tashof Bernton told CNN restaurants in Los Angeles and Elizabethtown, Pennsylvania, have also bought the bands.
Bernton said he hopes the use will become more widespread to help demonstrate support for the vaccination program and help people feel more comfortable as the economy continues to reopen.
“It’s a way of saying, ‘Look, I’m safe,’ and try to deescalate some of the tension and fear that people feel after about a year in lockdown.”
A portion of profits from the bands go to Covid relief and recovery efforts, Bernton said.
“Yes, it is a business, but it also really is about both showing support for the vaccination program and doing what we can to bring us back together again as a society,” Bernton said.
