New York Cancels $64M COVID App
Written by on July 8, 2023
Remember the Excelsior App?
As the New York Post recently reminded its readers, the Excelsior App is a digital passport used to prove that a person had been vaccinated against COVID-19. Gov. Andrew Cuomo introduced the Excelsior App in May 2021; it was designed to be a high-tech alternative to vaccination cards. According to the Post, the App contains vaccination status information about 11.5 million New Yorkers.
On July 3, 2023, Gov. Kathy Hochul’s office announced that the Excelsior App would be discontinued as of July 28. A spokesperson for the Governor explained that “because demand for instant access to vaccine records has subsided and the public health emergency has ended,” there is no further need for the Excelsior App. The state intends to continue to secure the data stored in the App.
While the Excelsior App program was initially expected to cost $2.5 million, the program has actually cost a scandalous $64 million over the past two years. In addition, the Post reports that the state has been spending $200,000 per month to maintain the unnecessary App. Furthermore, the Albany Times Union has discovered that much of the cost was spent on payments to contractors and consultants. These exorbitant payments are being investigated by the state inspector general.
The Post’s Rikki Schlott has opined that “Gov. Hochul was right to put the Excelsior Pass money pit out of its misery. But the state was wrong to unleash this dystopian app in the first place — and wronger still for allowing it to balloon unchecked.” Ms. Schlott is correct. The Excelsior App is hardly the first example of irresponsible and unaccountable COVID-related government spending. Let’s hope it will be the last.
