(One thing I wanted to do in my blog was share interesting observations about European politics…because you know, I’m political. So here it goes!)
Coronavirus policy is an especially interesting to report back on given the fact that countries around the world are learning from each other’s policies, profiting from a global game of trial and error. What happens here could happen back at home, too.
France has recently made headlines in both Europe and abroad for its controversial pass sanitaire (basically a vaccine passport). At first, the pass sanitaire (proof of two vaccines OR a recent recovery from Covid) was only required at places like theaters and large public gatherings. Now, as of two days ago, the pass is mandatory to enter all restaurants and bars.
You heard that right, all restaurants and bars (and coffee shops and basically anywhere you order something).
It’s a tricky situation. As it stands, (since Monday) about 66.9% of the population has received a first dose, while 55.9% of the population are fully vaccinated. Businesses that were hit the hardest by the pandemic — restaurants and bars — are yet again facing a shrinkage in their clientele. One cafe owner shared that her regulars that are not vaccinated can no longer come in.
If only a bit over 50% of the population qualifies for the pass, you’re effectively cutting your business in half. That’s a pretty dire prospect for bars and restaurants so you might be wondering how seriously this is being taken. Currently I’m sitting at a charming coffee shop in Vieux Tours. I walked into the cafe, where the door was totally open, to order an iced coffee that was delivered to my outdoor curbside table. Before even placing my order, my CDC card was studied by both the barista and the cafe owner (I face a bit more scrutiny since I don’t have the French QR code). I was inside for no more than two minutes.
Next to me, there’s a family of three: a wife, husband, and their young daughter. The wife went inside to order come coffee and pastry while the father sat outside with their daughter. When the wife came back, she told her husband to prepare his QR code despite sitting outside the whole time. Two minutes later, the waiter came out to scan his phone.
Two nights ago, the first night of the official extension of the pass sanitaire’s jurisdiction, I sat at an outdoor table at one of the bars in Tours’ Place Plumereau. Without even entering the bar, a waiter came up to me to verify my two vaccinations.
Tours is a sleepy city where most dining happens outdoors. I have yet to get to Paris, but I know there have been reports of law enforcement going up to restaurant clients to verify their passes.
I wanted to know how people my age felt about the pass so I went to, well, a bar.
Satisfied with the number of youths, I struck up a conversation with the three guys next to me, all between 21 and 22 years old. Two of them shared frustration with the pass, feeling it was an attack on people’s freedoms. This was an especially pertinent topic for the two young men, both members of France’s Air Force. “We serve for people to have that freedom to choose.”
(On the other hand, older vaccinated people I’ve spoken with tend to feel that their freedoms are preserved with the pass.)
One of the soldiers added that his parents own a restaurant for truck drivers and have seen a dire contraction in their clientele.
I asked if they could simply not check for the pass. “There are heavy fines, you have to verify they are vaccinated.”
And it’s not just his parent’s restaurant. The three young men, all frequent visitors of this bar in Tours (people go out every night in France) said that since Monday of this week, the first day of the pass, there seems to be half the number of people in the street.
The French are famous for a propensity to protest. The pass sanitaire has been the perfect impetus for this tendency. « Les français n’aime pas être obligés, » shared one of the Ursuline nuns hosting me this week.
And it’s true, the French hate being told what to do. At a restaurant one night in Lyon, I watched a demonstration of at least thirty people walking down a main drag, decrying what they see as an infringement on their liberties as well as a blow to their businesses. According to people I’ve met from all over France, these protests are happening everywhere.
I have mixed feelings about these protests and general opposition of the pass. There seem to be three groups at large: those who believe vaccine conspiracies, those who are waiting for more information on the effect of the vaccine, and those who are worried about the economic impact of the pass.
I have little sympathy for the first group, anti-vaxxers who listen to and propagate conspiracies. Full disclosure, I myself am vaccinated and have encouraged many of my friends and family members to received their vaccines.
The second group is complicated. I’ll address that later.
The third group, those who are protesting the pass sanitaire’s impact on businesses, I see their point.
In my opinion, it is unfair for businesses to take on the consequences of the unvaccinated. At this point, it’s evident (or at least should be) that having Covid is riskier than being vaccinated and that vaccinations have definitively saved lives and moved us towards a semblance of normalcy. The other thing that’s clear is that vaccinated folks are pretty well-protected against new strains like Delta.
In a similar vein, I find it bothersome that the unvaccinated are hindering the daily lives of vaccinated folks. As trivial as it sounds, it’s annoying to pull out my vaccine card every time I go to an outdoor show, a restaurant, or a bar when I know that the vast majority of people in France (and the U.S.) have easy access to a vaccine. Bottom line is that things could me more “normal” if more people were vaccinated.
So that leaves me with a conundrum: I think people should be vaccinated but I also don’t think the government can force them, especially when nudges include hurting businesses.
One solution might be a more effective education campaign on vaccines. Many of the people I’ve met in France and Poland are holding off and claim to be waiting for more information (group two from above). They aren’t anti-vaccine, they’re just nervous to be injected so soon after vaccine development. Something like FDA approval or simply more information on the safety/content of the vaccine could go a long way.
And for all the unvaccinated, maybe there’s another, softer nudge that could encourage vaccination. I don’t really know yet. But hitting the French where it hurts the most — access to their beloved cuisine — is as close to forcing them into vaccination as possible.
So there’s my quick take on the vaccine passports. My opinion is evolving as the situation changes, but thought it might be helpful to fill you all in on policy that could very well make its way into the States. Feel free to let me know what you think; like I said, I’m still developing my opinion.