A panel of independent experts from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has given a green signal to a pediatric COVID19 shot that has been developed by Pfizer. With the sanction, nearly 28 million children in the United States have become eligible for COVID19 vaccination this week. However, many parents are still hesitant to get their kids immunized. Health officials are trying all ways and means to persuade parents to get their kids inoculated as soon as possible. Considering the vaccine hesitancy, some health officials have decided to motivate these eligible children to get the vaccine by including them in many incentive programs. New York City officials have said that children can get $100 if they take the first dose of Pfizer’s COVID19 pediatric shot at a vaccine site that is run by the city administration. These kids can claim tickets to other exciting venues of the city as well such as the Statue of Liberty or the Brooklyn Cyclones baseball team. Other people living in New York City who have been vaccinated as well have been given such incentives. Mayor Bill de Blasio has said that health officials of the city want children and parents to take full advantage of such incentive programs and get themselves immunized. Kids or anyone can use these incentives around the holidays but most essentially, the officials want kids and families to be safe from the dreaded disease.
Health officials in Chicago as well are giving away $100 gift cards to children in the age range of 5 to 11 years when they get vaccinated against COVID19 at Chicago Public Health events or clinics. The Chicago School District, which is one of the biggest schools in the US, as well has decided to close the school on November 12 to observe Vaccination Awareness Day; therefore, children can easily get their shots. The CEO of the Chicago School District, Pedro Martinez has said that it is very unlikely that the school makes any late changes in the school calendar but it is viewed as a crucial investment in the future of the school and the health and welfare of the students and school staff. San Antonio health officials in Texas have declared that parents or guardians of children who help their kids to get the vaccines at a public health clinic can claim $100 gift cards for the H-E-B grocery store. Health officials from Louisiana as well have said that children who are in the age group of 5 to 11 years can get $100 if they take COVID19 shots. Public Health officials from Minnesota have recently launched a vaccine campaign program for kids called Kids Deserve a Shot. The program aims to strengthen the number of vaccinated people in the age range of 12 to 17 years.
The state officials in Minnesota have been giving away $200 visa cards along with an opportunity to participate in a lucky draw for a $100000 college scholarship or a Minnesota experience prize package. However, some experts have said that it is unclear whether these incentive programs will help strengthen the number of vaccinated people. A study that has been released last month has shown that incentive lotteries that have been conducted by 19 states in the US have not worked well in increasing the number of vaccines used. This study has been released in the journal JAMA Health Forum. Nevertheless, health officials think that the lottery incentive might be less alluring as compared to actual cash for vaccination. A survey that has been done by the Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF) has found that nearly 47 percent of people who earlier have alleged that they want to wait and watch have said paid time off from work might persuade them to get vaccines. Nearly 39 percent of people enrolled in the survey have said that a cash incentive of $200 from their employers might motivate them for vaccination. As per the CDC data, over 58 percent of the US population has been fully vaccinated so far.
