New York City is paying people $100 in exchange for getting vaccinated

New York City is going to start paying people to get vaccinated, Mayor Bill De Blasio announced on Wednesday.

Anyone who gets vaccinated at a city-run site is eligible to pick up a pre-paid debit card worth $100, according to the NYC Covid-19 Citywide Information Portal. The “COVID-19 Vaccine Incentives” starts Friday, July 30, and only lasts for a limited time.

People are also eligible to win tickets to a multitude of New York City attractions, should they prefer a day at the theme park instead of $100, for example. Vaccine incentives include New York City Football Club tickets, Brooklyn Cyclone tickets, a New York City 10-ride subway pass, a public theater annual membership, two week membership to Citibike, a family membership to “Snug Harbor” or “family fun wristband” and free ride on the Cyclone at Coney Island’s Luna Park.

“STARTING FRIDAY: Get your first dose of the #COVID19 vaccine at a city-run site and you’ll get $100. It’s that simple,” the NYC Mayor’s Office twitter account tweeted in an effort to promote the program.

The soon-to-be instated incentives will start just days after De Blasio announced that all New York City municipal workers will be required to get the COVID-19 vaccine — or agree to weekly Covid testing — by September 13. “This is about our recovery. This is about what we need to do to bring back New York City,” he said. “This is about keeping people safe.”

City-wide Covid cases increased from approximately 200 in June to 1,000 in July, according to the New York Times. 75 percent of these cases are from the highly transmissible Delta variant, and the vast majority of people recently infected — and subsequently hospitalised — are not vaccinated.

New Yorkers can schedule their vaccine appointments — and win $100 — here.