UK NHS app updated with Apple Wallet support for COVID Pass

Separately from its controversial coronavirus contact tracing project, the U.K. has updated its regular NHS app to effectively become a vaccination passport.

Wales and England's famously poor $50 million NHS COVID app is currently under criticism for sending almost 700,000 self-isolation alerts in the week of July 14-21, 2021. Now known locally as the "pingdemic," these alerts have become so numerous that the UK government has cut back on its advice about self-isolating.

According to BBC News, though, the separate NHS app has been given more COVID-related functionality. NHS App is an iOS app that lets users access health services from their phone.

Now it's been updated to allow iPhone and iPad users to store their COVID vaccination details in the Apple Wallet app. In England, vaccinated people get what's called an NHS COVID Pass, and increasingly are being asked to show it as a condition of entry to events or venues.

Businesses are not required to ask for it, but the UK government is encouraging the use wherever people are likely to be in large groups for a sustained period.

Users of the NHS App must register with their National Health Service details, and then from the Popular Services section, choose Get your NHS COVID Pass.

There are different options depending on whether users are travelling, although the government also says the pass is not to be used for international travel at all.

The app generates a QR code, although the UK government calls it a barcode. This code has an expiry date on it, but that date is specifically to do with the QR code, it is not an expiry for the COVID pass.

Once generated, the QR code can be displayed within the NHS App or, now, also sent to Apple Wallet. If it's sent to Wallet, it will not automatically be updated after the expiry date.

Users will have to go back into the NHS App, get a new QR code generated, and send that to Apple Wallet.

19 Comments

rob53 3307 comments · 13 Years

About 3 years ago

And why are Americans worried about a vaccination card/passport/whatever? We have to show ID at several places. Nobody, except border patrol, asks for proof of citizenship. It’s seems like only republicans are worried about this. Why is that?

Xed 2875 comments · 4 Years

rob53 said:

And why are Americans worried about a vaccination card/passport/whatever? We have to show ID at several places. Nobody, except border patrol, asks for proof of citizenship. It’s seems like only republicans are worried about this. Why is that?

Funny how they're against something reasonable because they feel they'll be tracked and yet those same idiots are willing to live-stream their own treasonous acts.

Xed said:

rob53 said:

And why are Americans worried about a vaccination card/passport/whatever? We have to show ID at several places. Nobody, except border patrol, asks for proof of citizenship. It’s seems like only republicans are worried about this. Why is that?

Funny how they're against something reasonable because they feel they'll be tracked and yet those same idiots are willing to live-stream their own treasonous acts.

yep!!!!

Kuyangkoh 838 comments · 7 Years

rob53 said:

And why are Americans worried about a vaccination card/passport/whatever? We have to show ID at several places. Nobody, except border patrol, asks for proof of citizenship. It’s seems like only republicans are worried about this. Why is that?

No iD required to Vote? What’s the difference

ArchStanton 200 comments · 3 Years

rob53 said:

And why are Americans worried about a vaccination card/passport/whatever? We have to show ID at several places. Nobody, except border patrol, asks for proof of citizenship. It’s seems like only republicans are worried about this. Why is that?

This is just ugliness at a big level, utterly without a modicum of thought of next week or next year. Incredible.. So you're equivocating a 'what's my name' identification with 'what is my health and medicine' identification? Are you kidding me?

You all are creating quite a nice future -- cloaked in 'we are doing it to protect you'. That not one single poster above my message even mentions the ramifications is appalling.

Trust me when I say to others reading this thread, you don't want these people 'keeping you safe for your own good'. You or your children will have neither safe nor good with people who can't see and think past today's TV or newspaper headlines.