Offering Prizes For Getting The Vaccine Seems Weird

Let's get this out there right away: I am not anti-vaccine whatsoever. This post is not meant to be a debate over the merits of getting (or not getting) the vaccine.

In my opinion if someone is on the fence about getting the vaccine they should be convinced by science and facts, not cash and prizes. This is not Let's Make A Deal.

Again, the vaccine isn't weird. The rollout, however, is.

"Congratulations, you just got a vaccine! Would you like this envelope or what's behind Door Number Two? Oh, sorry, you got a rotten fish head! Better luck next time!"

Last night, California Governor Gavin Newsom announced that his state will give away $116.5 million in cash to vaccinated residents of California. In other words, taxpayers are giving people $116.5 million to get the vaccine.

Millions and millions of people have been suffering extreme financial hardship from the pandemic. Bribing them with money to get the vaccine feels to me like preying on their desperation.

The tone of the "incentives" is really weird too. It has a total game show vibe... Newsom's announcement even includes a department-store-going-out-of-business style flyer and the hash tag #VaxFTW.

We are talking about people's health, not fun and games. COVID-19 is a serious illness that affected every person around the world and people are being asked to rush into a medical procedure that they have questions about. Answer those questions and convince people naturally to get the vaccine.

Check out Colorado's governor, who goes full Matthew Lasko is his pitch to Colorado residents:

The pitch even got an informercial treatment from news station 9NEWS in Denver:

Minnesota Governor Tim Walz doesn't even have a bag of money to offer, only what amounts to basically radio station giveaways like passes to amusement parks and sporting events. If you were originally not going to get the vaccine, is a $10 Twins ticket really going to push you over the top?

Something just seems weird about the whole situation.