Gwinnett County officials will pay people $100 for taking the COVID-19 vaccine this weekend, following in the footsteps of nearby communities.
The county will dole out 2,500 gift cards during “The Vaccines Aren’t Scary” event from 9 a.m.-5 p.m. on Friday and Saturday inside the former Sears at Gwinnett Place Mall. The Gwinnett, Newton, and Rockdale County Health Departments will administer Pfizer and Moderna vaccines to individuals ages 12 and up.
Anyone who wishes to take the vaccine and receive the financial incentive must secure a slot at GCGA.us/VaccineIncentive. The county asks individuals to make an appointment by 9 a.m. Thursday for the Friday event and 9 a.m. Friday for the Saturday event.
“All of our residents are busy, some were waiting for more information and some simply haven’t gotten around to getting vaccinated yet,” said County Commission Chairwoman Nicole Love Hendrickson in a news release. “We’re giving residents another reason to get vaccinated now in the hopes that this is the little push some people need to go ahead and get their shot.”
Other communities in Georgia, including DeKalb County, have successfully drawn people to vaccination sites with financial incentives. More than 2,500 people turned out at a vaccine event at The Mall at Stonecrest offering $100 prepaid debit cards.
About 53% of Gwinnett County residents were fully vaccinated as of Monday, according to the Georgia Department of Public Health’s vaccine distribution dashboard. About 58% had taken one dose by Monday.
The county will use $250,000 of its American Rescue Plan Act funds to pay for the gift cards. The three-county health department has used Gwinnett Place Mall as a mass vaccination site since February.
“The only way out of this pandemic is through vaccination,” said Audrey Arona, district health director for the local health department, in the release. “We’re grateful to the county for providing incentives and hope this opportunity moves more of our community to choose to be vaccinated.”
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