1:10
- ABC News
- July 15, 2021
Why vaccine incentives didn't really work: Experts
Experts say state leaders need to rethink strategies.
1:10
Several states with already lagging vaccine numbers saw no jump after their programs were announced, according to health data.
In Louisiana, where only 39% of the entire population has one dose of the vaccine, the seven-day average of new daily doses administered has remained level at around 10,000 for the last month, according to Louisiana Health Department. A lottery for vaccinated residents was announced on June 17.
In Arkansas, the seven-day average of new vaccine shots administered declined by over 3,500 after the state announced its scratch-off game incentive for vaccinated residents on May 25, according to the Arkansas Health Department.
\"I don't know if we're going to be able to buy our way out of this,\" Col. Robert Ator, the program director of the Arkansas vaccine incentive program told ABC affiliate KATV on June 28.
A representative for the Arkansas Health Department told ABC News the state is looking at other options including a request to businesses to offer incentives to people.
Don't focus on incentives: Experts
Schulman, who co-authored a report in the New England Journal of Medicine in January arguing that the best ways to promote the COVID-19 vaccination among the populace is for state leaders to rethink their approaches and focus on marketing rather than rewards
Specifically, Schulman said states should prepare and launch marketing and advertising campaigns aimed at Americans who think it's OK not to get a shot because hospitalizations and deaths are down from the winter and they'll be fine.
\"They are a really important group to address now. They're more likely to respond to a good marketing campaign,\" he said.
![\"PHOTO:](\"http://a.abcnews.com/images/Health/larry-hogan-nc-jef-210525_1621970345104_hpMain_4x3t_384.jpg\")
Informing those unvaccinated members about the dangers of the virus, particularly the growing threat of variants, and the effects on their families and businesses will go a longer way than a cash prize, Schulman argued.
\"I would go back to those lottery states and ask how much did you spend on the lottery and how much could you have spent on Facebook ads that could appeal to those populations,\" he said.
Tierney noted that the Vax-a-Million sweepstakes generated a form of publicity for the vaccine because of news articles, social media posts and word of mouth. His office has estimated that the coverage was the equivalent of $50 million in advertising.
\"We could not have bought this word of mouth,\" he said.
Schulman said it is promising that state leaders are working to close the vaccination gap, but reiterated that they'll need more precise targeting to pick up the pace.
\"The fact that these governors sounded the alarm early and said, 'We have a problem,' is encouraging,\" he said. \"They must not give up.\"
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