CNN’s Dr. Wen Calls on Biden Administration to Offer Americans ‘Proof of Vaccination’ for Potential Use in Places Including Grocery Stores

CNN’s Dr. Leana Wen called on Thursday for the Biden administration to begin providing an option for Americans to show “proof of vaccination.”

“I think there is … one thing the Biden administration could be doing right now that would change the equation when it comes to incentives” to become vaccinated against Covid-19, Wen said in an interview with CNN’s Poppy Harlow. “And that’s to use proof of vaccination. If they could say, get the vaccine, you have a proof of vaccination, you can take off your mask. That would be really key.”

“Can we play that out?” Harlow replied. “I went to a restaurant the other week that wanted to see my vaccination proof to sit down. I can see it happening in restaurants. It would be much harder if you’re walking into any public building or super market or shopping mall or just being with people at a house party, things like that. How does proof of vaccination work in all group circumstances?”

Wen suggested it could be required in settings such as include grocery stores.

“I think it depends on the circumstance,” Wen told Harlow. “So if you’re going to the grocery store and the grocery store doesn’t have the capacity to enforce some kind of proof of vaccination, then they have to say that indoor masking needs to apply because we don’t know who is vaccinated and who is not. Same for schools. You can’t expect every teacher in every school to be asking, well, you’re not wearing a mask, so are you vaccinated or not? If that’s the case everybody should be wearing masks. I could imagine there are already concert venues or workplaces that are saying if you are not vaccinated, you can’t come, or you have to get a negative test. And that’s what’s needed in order to really incentivize vaccines at this point.”

She also said she believed “vaccine mandates” were “something that will have to come.”

Watch above via CNN.