Arizona GOP congressman introduces No Vaccine Passport Act

Arizona Republican Rep. Andy Biggs introduced legislation Thursday that would ban federal agencies from creating "vaccine passports."

Vaccine passports are a method some have purposed to demonstrate whether or not an individual has been vaccinated from the deadly coronavirus.

While proponents of such a system have said it would be helpful in reopening businesses and the travel industry, Republicans in Congress have condemned the idea as an invasion of privacy and an opening for government surveillance.

"I am profoundly disturbed that the Biden Administration would even consider imposing vaccine passports on the American people," Biggs said in a statement Thursday. "My private healthcare decisions—and yours—are nobody else’s business. Vaccine passports will not help our nation recover from COVID-19, instead, they will simply impose more Big Brother surveillance on our society."  

Fox News could not immediately reach Biggs for comment or to verify when the White House alleged it would support a vaccine passport program – a statement that would be at odds with their stance on the subject earlier this week.

RELATED: Health experts worry COVID-19 vaccine skepticism could put herd immunity at risk

White House press secretary Jen Psaki suggested Tuesday that President Biden opposes passport vaccines.

"Let me be very clear on this. I know there's been lots of questions,"  Psaki said during a press briefing. "The government is not now, nor will we be, supporting a system that requires Americans to carry a credential."

She added, "There will be no federal vaccinations database and no federal mandate requiring everyone to obtain a single vaccination credential."

Some nations in Europe, along with Israel, are already using vaccine passports or are developing similar tracking methods.

Hawaii has floated the idea of instating a vaccine passport for travelers to their state, and New York became the first state to roll out a digital vaccine tracker, called the "Excelsior Pass." 

Two Republican state legislators told Fox News that they are planning on introducing legislation to ban vaccine tacking methods, calling the invasion of privacy a "slippery slope."

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and Texas Gov. Greg Abbott have also already issued executive orders banning vaccine passports in their states.

Audrey Conklin contributed to this report.

Read more on FOXNews.com.

Continued Coverage

Featured

Masks and other PPEs being disposed of improperly amid ongoing COVID-19 pandemic

Masks, gloves and other personal protective equipment have been widely used during the COVID-19 pandemic as a way to curb the spread of the virus. Most of it is disposable, but much of it is being thrown away in an improper manner.

Featured

Demand for vaccines slows as Arizona surpasses 17,000 deaths

The state also reported 750 additional confirmed COVID-19 cases as the state’s totals increased to 846,230 cases and 17,023 deaths.

Featured

Dr. Cara Christ talks about new developments, problems with Arizona's COVID-19 vaccination campaign

More COVID-19 vaccination sites are opening in Arizona, but people are experiencing issues when it comes to getting the shot.