With West Virginia vaccination rates falling rapidly in the past few weeks, Governor Jim Justice told staff that he wanted to hear any idea to convince citizens to get vaccinated. It doesn’t matter how crazy the suggestions are.
In the end, an idea prevailed: Justice wants to give young people – the group most likely to have doubts about a vaccination – a savings bond for 100 dollars if they get vaccinated. This is reported by the US newspaper “Washington Post”. “It would be just a drop in the bucket compared to the tons of money we are currently spending,” Justice said in a telephone interview on Tuesday. In addition, the state would currently receive federal funding for testing, protective equipment, and economic assistance.
“Our children probably don’t even know how important they are when it comes to shutting this down,” Justice told CBS News. “I’m trying to find a way that really motivates them – and us – to get over the mountain.”
West Virginia vaccination rate plummeted – savings bonds are now supposed to help
In the first few weeks of the United States’ vaccination campaign, West Virginia was recognized for having the highest rate of vaccination doses. But then the vaccination rate crashed. Last month, the seven-day vaccination average dropped nearly 50 percent.
The governor said his team had thought about handing out pizza and cake or holding weekly raffles with big prizes for those vaccinated. But Justice wanted something with more oomph that would grab the public’s attention and imagination.
But what would his savings bond plan actually cost? Justice said he estimated the program would cost up to $ 27.5 million if about 72 percent of 380,000 citizens ages 16 and 35 accepted the offer. The offer should also apply retrospectively to young people who have already been vaccinated. The state spent about three times as much in the past year to test citizens for the corona virus, Justice says in comparison.
Free drinks, donuts and shopping vouchers as a vaccination incentive
Justice’s savings bond is not the only incentive to convince people to get a coronavirus vaccination. Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont announced this week that adults can get a free drink in certain restaurants when they show their vaccination card. The campaign should apply for two weeks from May 19.
Universities are also busily promoting the vaccination: Wayne State University in Detroit has announced that vaccinated students will receive ten dollars, and the University of Iowa plans to distribute downtown Iowa City gift certificates to those who show their vaccination cards. Large companies also take part in the vaccination campaigns: Krispy Kreme wants to offer everyone who presents a vaccination card a free donut per day, Budweiser wants to buy a round of beer.
Nationwide, nearly 142 million Americans have received at least one vaccination, the Washington Post reports. However, according to a poll by the Washington Post and ABC News, a majority of unvaccinated Americans said they are unlikely to or definitely will not be vaccinated. Adults aged 18 to 39 are the most hesitant: 55 percent of them say they will definitely or probably not get vaccinated, compared to 24 percent of adults overall.
Expert: Bribery is “a terrible sight internationally”
But the vaccination campaigns of states, universities and companies are criticized from many sides. “The fact that we as a country now have to beg, pay, or bribe people to take this life-saving vaccine is a terrible sight internationally,” said Peter Hotez, a vaccine expert at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, to the Washington Post. “We look like a nation of adolescents, especially at a time when India, Africa and most of the world are crying out for more vaccine supplies.”
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