A Gentle Reminder Not to Buy ‘Vaccine Exemption’ Cards on Facebook
These cards are generally meaningless
Though Facebook has promised to crack down on health misinformation, many scams still proliferate on the platform. One persistent scam is the sale of “vaccine exemption” or “mask exemption” cards claiming to provide legal evidence that a person does not have to get vaccinated or wear a mask. These cards provide no such evidence.
Some of these cards use the emblem for the U.S. Justice Department, cite a fraudulent government body named the “Freedom to Breathe Agency,” or reference the Americans with Disabilities Act. They sometimes mention a health care rule known as the “law of informed consent,” but as staff writer Sarah Emerson writes on OneZero, a card referencing this law does not hold any legal power. Cards are sometimes sold in packages of 500 for $49.99 — a significant price to pay for completely meaningless items.
These cards first emerged in June 2020 and are still widely advertised on Facebook as well as other social media platforms. “Nearly a year has passed and the scam continues to proliferate online, somehow evading numerous declarations by Facebook and Twitter to eradicate Covid-19 misinformation,” Emerson writes.
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