Spain has become the first country in Europe to create a register maintained by the government with a list of the names of citizens who have refused the COVD-19 vaccine, a list which will be shared with other European governments. Spain’s Minister of Health Salvador Illa recently announced that the country will be setting up a register of citizens who have refused the COVD-19 vaccine when it was offered to them and the reasons why they refused.1
Although Spain has not mandated COVID-19 vaccinations, the threat of being placed on a list looms over every Spanish citizen when they are contacted by regional authorities that it is their turn to get the vaccine. Should they refuse the vaccine, their name will be added to the list, which will then be shared with other European nations. Illa said that this list will not be accessible by the public or employers but will be maintained in order to keep a record of who was offered the vaccine and refused it.2 Illa stated:
People who are offered a therapy that they refuse for any reason, it will be noted in the register… that there is no error in the system, not to have given this person the possibility of being vaccinated.3
Sharing List of Names of COVID-19 Vaccine Refusers Could Lead to Punitive Sanctions
However, if the stated reason for keeping a list of names of unvaccinated citizens is to simply have a record of those offered the vaccine, why would it be necessary to note who accepted or rejected the vaccine and for what reason? And why would it be necessary to share names of the unvaccinated with other countries?
It also raises concerns about how the list of names could be misused to apply punitive sanctions to the unvaccinated in the future. European news outlet L’Union Sarda speculated:
But the fact that it will be shared with other EU countries may lead to a ban on travel for those who refuse the drug. Not to mention the fact that Spain’s decision could pave the way for similar measures in other European countries.4
This cautionary sentiment was echoed by the deputy director of the Spanish General Council of Nursing, José Luís Cobos, who stated:
The most important thing is to know how the registry will be used. If it’s for public health purposes to better understand COVID, and it’s anonymous, that’s one thing. But if it’s ‘I’m now on the list of the bad people,’ that’s another thing. We don’t think a registry should be used to infringe on liberties, or for employers against people.5
Will Proof of COVID-19 Vaccination Be Required to Enter Public Spaces?
There does not appear to be a consensus among Spanish officials as to the purpose of the list and how it will be used. While the United Kingdom’s prime minister for vaccine deployment, Nadim Zahaw, has said COVID-19 vaccinations are voluntary, he has indicated that businesses that are open to the public, such as movie theater, gyms and airlines, may soon require proof of vaccination upon entrance and, to facilitate that, the government was exploring technology that would track vaccine compliance.6
Requiring proof of COVID-19 vaccination in order to travel and participate in activities in daily life would become a de facto mandate as people would be punished if they do not get vaccinated. The application of societal sanctions for failing to get one or more doses of COVID-19 vaccine would amount to coercion of reluctant citizens to agree to be vaccinated, undermining the ethical principle of voluntary, informed consent to medical risk taking.
The head of Spain’s Medicines Agency, María Jesús Lamas, has said that the list would be used “to understand the causes behind declining the vaccination … doubt or rejection.”7
Resorting to compiling a list of citizens who are exercising their right to decline the injection of a new vaccine that has been tested for less than a year,8 and sharing that list with other nations is reminiscent of the fear driven tactics used during the McCarthy era. In the 1950’s, thousands of Americans were placed on a list and charged with being disloyal to the United States, most of the time with little or no evidence. Those people who found their names on the list had their careers and reputations destroyed and many were forced to leave the country under a cloud of suspicion.9 10
It is alarming to think that any country would choose to repeat that dark time in history.