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Hawaii officials will allow state residents who have been fully vaccinated against the coronavirus to skip pre-travel testing and quarantine requirements for flights between islands. Hawaii becomes the second state in the nation after New York to implement a vaccination verification program, state officials said at a news conference Tuesday. (Jones, 4/21)

The world awaits pandemic weary travelers, who are vaccinated against COVID-19 and ready to hit the road. United Airlines (UAL) announced Monday, in its Q1 earnings report, that it will begin flying this July to Iceland, Greece, and Croatia "moving to capitalize on emerging pent-up demand for travel to countries where vaccinated travelers are welcome."  The key, of course, is for a passenger to prove they have been vaccinated. Countries like Israel and China are already using digital certificates to allow citizens to travel while New York state is using The Excelsior Pass. These digital documents allow people to "present digital proof of COVID-19 vaccination or negative test results." They are often called vaccine passports but Delta Air Lines (DAL) CEO Ed Bastian told Yahoo Finance Live, "We don't call it a vaccine passport. It carries too many connotations."  (Shapiro, 4/20)

A House committee Monday approved a proposal that would limit local emergency orders and make permanent Gov. Ron DeSantis’ executive order barring COVID-19 “passports” that would show people have been vaccinated. The Health & Human Services Committee voted 14-8 to support a revised proposal (HB 7047) intended to “minimize the negative effects of extended emergencies.” (Turner, 4/20)

COVID-19 vaccine interest among Generation Z, those born between 1997 and 2012, has dropped in recent months, according to new polls — a worrying trend as the country opens vaccine eligibility to everyone over age 16. In a NBCLX/Morning Consult poll conducted last month, 26% of Gen Z respondents said they will not get vaccinated, and 19% said that they do not yet know whether they will. In a similar poll conducted last year, only 5% of Gen Z said that they would not get vaccinated, demonstrating a sharp increase in vaccine hesitancy at a time when other groups are growing more accepting of the vaccine. A recent STAT-Harris Poll also found that 21% of Gen Z respondents said they would not get vaccinated against COVID-19, while 34% said that they would “wait a while and see” before getting vaccinated. (Ao, 4/19)

As the days grow longer, there’s a palpable feeling of hope in the air — at least in the more fortunate western countries. Thanks in part to vaccines, Covid-19 deaths are dropping in the U.K. and the U.S., enabling parts of normal life to resume. But, as we’re well aware, it’s not over yet. If we want to have a shot at halting transmission, everybody needs their jabs. Governments around the world desperately need to close the yawning vaccine gap between rich and poor nations. But as wealthy nations begin offering vaccinations to younger cohorts, they may hit a challenge closer to home. (Lara Williams, 4/21)

Doctors in Bradford County keep pleading with patients: Consider getting the coronavirus vaccine. But lately, patients keep saying they want to wait. The county, on the Pennsylvania-New York border, has seen COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations surge in recent days. While more than half of U.S. adults — and 43% of Pennsylvanians — have gotten at least one dose, barely a quarter of those in Bradford County have done so. And the state’s expansion last week of eligibility to all 16 and older didn’t bring a fresh rush to clinics. (McCarthy and McDaniel, 4/21)

Herpes infections may be a side effect of the COVID-19 vaccine, experts have revealed. Scientists in Israel identified six cases in a new study of patients developing a skin rash known as herpes zoster after receiving the Pfizer vaccine, according to a study in the Rheumatology journal. Herpes zoster starts off as a small, itchy skin rash, but if left untreated, it could cause nerve damage and pain, the Jerusalem Post reported. (Salo, 4/20)

On March 13, Lonnie Gaylor noticed he had a persistent cough that resisted over-the-counter medicine. Two days later, the 71-year-old met virtually with his primary care doctor who recommended he get tested for strep throat. A couple hours after driving through a hospital testing site in Waxahachie, Texas, just south of Dallas, Gaylor learned he was positive for both strep throat and COVID-19. It was a concerning diagnosis given Gaylor has Type 2 diabetes and a kidney disorder, and was 40 pounds overweight. Yet, he had been fully vaccinated against COVID-19 for a little over a month. (Camero, 4/20)