Don’t Laminate Your Vax Card [PHIL-OSOPHY]

I want to protect my COVID-19 vaccination card, but I'm getting mixed messages. Staples, Office Max and others are offering to laminate it free of charge, but an army of people not in favor of laminating is growing larger by the day.

What I'm hearing is it's probably not a good idea to laminate for a few reasons.

The space under your vaccination information may be needed in the future for a booster shot. Not that this has been announced, but with the way they change things, month to month, you're probably better off not laminating it. In some states, a label is placed on the card that has the vaccine brand and lot number that have been printed on thermal printer labels that make the information illegible.

It's smart to take a photo of your card and store it in your phone or in an email file. It's also a good idea to photocopy the card and keep it in a safe place. For now, keeping your card in a sealed plastic baggie will suffice and it will keep it preserved as well. If you lost your card, replacement cards are available where you were vaccinated or by contacting Department of Health to find out how to get another card.

I want to thank all the listeners who called in and offered their expertise on whether to laminate or not, because my wife and I were going to get our cards laminated this week. We definitely won't now.

Phil Paleologos is the host of The Phil Paleologos Show on 1420 WBSM New Bedford. He can be heard weekdays from 6 a.m. to 10 a.m. Contact him at phil@wbsm.com and follow him on Twitter @PhilPaleologos. The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of the author.