Gov. Kim Reynolds rejects President Biden's call for $100 vaccine incentives

David Pitt

Associated Press

Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds has no plans to offer $100 incentives to Iowans to get the coronavirus vaccine after President Joe Biden pleaded with states and local governments to use federal funds to entice people to stop the rapid spread of a virus variant, an aide said Friday.

While many states and some Iowa counties have offered incentives for citizens to get a COVID-19 vaccination, Iowa's governor continues to call for citizens to get vaccinated while repeating that ultimately it's their choice.

Iowa had 49.5% of the population fully immunized as of Thursday, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. That ranks 21st in the nation.

Vaccination rates have fallen rapidly in Iowa since the spring, from a seven-day average of over 17,000 people becoming fully vaccinated in May to 1,402 in recent days.

More from Reynolds on vaccines this week:

Reynolds spokesman Pat Garrett said Friday the governor has no plans to comply with Biden's offer Thursday for states to spend $100 in federal funds for each newly vaccinated person.

In an email, Iowa Department of Public Health Sarah Ekstrand said the state's strategy is unchanged from its current "education and communications efforts."

Several states, including New Mexico, Ohio, and Colorado, have already offered their own $100 incentive programs. Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz responded quickly to Biden's request, saying Thursday his state will offer new incentives.

As of Friday, unvaccinated Minnesotans 12 and older who get their first shot by Aug. 15 will get a $100 Visa gift card to spend however they choose.

► 'She needs to look in her mirror':Readers' letters about Kim Reynolds' handling of COVID-19 in Iowa

Some Iowa counties, communities offer COVID vaccine lotteries, incentives

Absent statewide incentives, officials in Polk and Black Hawk counties in recent weeks created their own incentive programs.

Polk County created a lottery for newly vaccinated people and holds drawings for $1,000 prizes every Friday through Aug. 22. Every other Friday, a $50,000 prize and a $5,000 scholarship will be handed out.

County supervisor Robert Brownell, one of two Republicans on the five-member board, said earlier this month that the response to the county incentive program wasn't as robust as he had hoped.

"The success of this has been somewhat lukewarm," Brownell told the Des Moines Register. "For the people that won $50,000, it wasn't so lukewarm, it's pretty good, obviously, but from our perspective, the numbers aren't overwhelmingly great."

County public health spokeswoman Nola Aigner Davis said Friday that anytime incentives or other programs get people vaccinated it's a benefit to the community.

"We know that anytime someone gets vaccinated it helps move community immunity forward. Any amount of vaccine is good," she said.

Black Hawk County has an incentive program involving gift card baskets worth $500 to local businesses and chain stores and Dubuque County officials said they are exploring an incentive program.

In a northwest Des Moines neighborhood, several businesses joined together to offer a Beaverdale Community Immunity Card that offers discounts or free items at 16 businesses in the Beaverdale neighborhood. Anyone getting their second dose of vaccine at one of three local pharmacy locations is eligible.