Rockford's Independent Newspaper

Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers offers $100 gift cards to anyone who gets COVID-19 vaccine

MADISON, Wis. — Gov. Tony Evers is changing his mind about paying people to get the coronavirus shot.

Evers on Monday said Wisconsin’s Department of Health Services will offer $100 gift cards to people who get the shot over the next two weeks.

“As our kids start returning back to school, and with the Delta variant spreading rapidly across the state, we all need to step up and stop the spread, and our COVID-19 vaccines are the best tools we have to do just that,” the governor said.

The giveaway is back-dated to Friday, Aug. 20, and runs until Labor Day.

“From now through Labor Day, if you’re a Wisconsin resident and you get your first COVID-19 shot in the state, you will get $100. It’s that simple: get vaccinated, get $100. I’m calling on all eligible Wisconsinites who have not gotten their COVID-19 vaccine yet to step up, roll up their sleeves, and do their part to help protect our state and put an end to COVID-19,” Evers added.

There is a form to fill out at a new state website, 100.wisconsin.gov/.

Evers fought the idea of vaccine incentives for months.

In May, he brushed off the idea of a vaccine lottery for Wisconsin, saying he’d rather not spend the state’s stimulus money on paying people to get their shots.

On Monday, Evers told reporters in Oshkosh that he changed his mind.

“I’ll be quite frank with you, I was one of the skeptics of the discussion but I saw how well this particular program worked in the state of Michigan,” he said.

The money for the $100 gift cards is coming from Wisconsin’s share of the American Rescue Plan. There’s no word just how much money is being budgeted.

As of Monday, Wisconsin’s Department of Health Services said nearly 54% of people in the state have gotten at least one dose of the coronavirus vaccine. Some six million doses have been handed-out in Wisconsin since late last year.

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