New York's obsolete COVID vaccine passport app still costing taxpayers $200K per month - report

New York's obsolete COVID vaccine passport app still costing taxpayers $200K per month - report | 23 May 2023 | The pandemic may be officially over, but New York is still paying an eye-raising fee of $200,000 per month to maintain a state vaccine passport that nobody uses. The Excelsior App was supposed to cost New York a mere $2.5 million when it debuted in the spring of 2021 as a way for New Yorkers to show their COVID-19 vaccinations as the state lifted pandemic restrictions on restaurants and live event venues. But costs since then have ballooned to $64 million, the Albany Times Union reported Sunday. Costs for the Excelsior app grew after state officials outsourced much of its development, which they say will allow the platform to serve purposes beyond showing vaccinations [?!?], though concrete plans for future applications have yet to be announced.