Vaccination treats and bribes

Several months before the roll-out of COVID vaccines, we published a study looking at incentives for getting vaccinated. Our research, as well as findings from other investigators, showed that vaccination-hesitant people were more likely to get vaccinated if they were provided evidence that the vaccines are safe and effective. Most vaccination hesitant people were not interested in receiving treats or bribes for getting vaccinated, such as free beer, pizza, or lottery tickets. Lottery tickets ranked near the bottom of the list of incentives. So, it comes as no surprise that when Ohio launched its $1M COVID vaccine lottery, it had no impact on vaccine uptake. A million dollars wasted, all because the Ohio decision-makers didn’t do their homework about what does and doesn't work. And if you’re going to offer an incentive, don’t make it look like a bribe. Offering someone a million bucks to get the jab sure sounds like bribery.