Even if you end up putting your COVID-19 vaccination card through the wash, fret not — you can still access your records.
With more than half of all Californians at least partially vaccinated, that means millions of those little easy-to-lose papers are floating around.
What if you lose yours? There are a couple of ways to access your records if you were vaccinated in L.A. County.
Healthvana
Healthvana, an online medical data resource, has teamed with the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health to provide a digitized version of your COVID-19 vaccination record that you can access from any internet-connected device and take with you wherever you go.
IPhone users can download the record to their Apple Wallet.
If you were vaccinated in Los Angeles County, you should be contacted by Healthvana via text or email. (To reassure users worried about scams, the Department of Public Health’s website has details about what the message should say.)
It may take a few weeks after your vaccination for Healthvana to get in touch with you, said Chief Executive Ramin Bastani, since the platform is aggregating data from hundreds of vaccination sites across the county.
If you don’t want to wait, you can contact Healthvana directly and get your data within a few days.
Note that this is not a “vaccine passport” — a concept that has been much discussed over the past few months. Healthvana’s records are just for you. The digital record includes only the date and location where you were vaccinated, and not personal information like your birthdate, meaning it can’t be considered a valid legal form of identification.
California Immunization Registry
The California Immunization Registry, a state-run program, allows anyone vaccinated in California to access their vaccination records digitally.
Two to three weeks after you receive your final COVID-19 vaccine dose, your data will be available through CAIR. Once you complete the request form, it can take another 14 days for records to become available.
There is no option to replace your original card, but CAIR can provide a new physical copy of your records.
Ways to keep your vaccination card safe
It’s still a good idea to keep your physical vaccination card safe, even if you have a digital version.
Free lamination services have been offered at office-supply stores, but experts don’t recommend it. If you want to keep your card safe, put it in a plastic holder like an ID card sleeve instead.
You can take a digital version with you anywhere, but it’s probably best to leave the physical copy at home. Just like you don’t carry your birth certificate everywhere, leave the card at home in a safe place.
For more information on how you can digitally access your COVID-19 vaccination records, go to the L.A. County public health website, Healthvana or the California Immunization Registry.
