President Joe Biden will call on states to use funds from the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan that was passed earlier this year to offer $100 payments to people as an incentive to get vaccinated.
In a statement on Thursday, the Treasury Department said the payments would be “an extra incentive to boost vaccination rates, protect communities, and save lives.”
“Treasury stands ready to give technical assistance to state and local governments so that they may use the funds effectively to support increased vaccination in their communities, and Treasury will partner with the Department of Health and Human Services throughout this effort,” the statement added.
As The Hill reports, “The Treasury Department clarified in May that governments that receive funds could use them for vaccine incentive programs. Several states and private businesses have already offered vaccine incentives in the form of lotteries and free food and other goods.”
The move comes amid another wave of coronavirus cases as the Delta variant has become the dominant strain in the country.
According to The New York Times, the country is averaging 66,924 new cases per day, up 146% from the previous 14 day days.
And as of Thursday, 49% of the population has been fully vaccinated, and 57% has received at least done dose of the vaccine.