Holcomb Still Opposed To Monetary Incentives For COVID-19 Vaccinations

Gov. Eric Holcomb said he’s still opposed to the state providing financial incentives as a way to encourage more Hoosiers to get the COVID-19 vaccine.

That’s as more states provide such incentives and Indiana’s vaccination rate continues to lag.

Holcomb said about a month ago he was philosophically opposed to providing large monetary incentives to get people vaccinated against COVID-19.

Since then, the average number of daily vaccine doses in Indiana has dropped about 60 percent, more than double the decline nationwide.

Still, Holcomb isn’t changing his tune.

“We’ve got to make sure that we’re getting vaccination access close and convenient to individuals and that’s what we’ll continue to do," Holcomb said. "So, partnering with folks county by county by county, as we’ve been doing, and just trying to double down and knocking on doors with folks that are trusted in individual communities.”

READ MORE: How Is Indiana Distributing COVID-19 Vaccines? Here's What You Need To Know

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Holcomb said he hopes more people will be convinced to get the vaccine when the FDA gives it full approval, beyond the current emergency use authorization.

Contact reporter Brandon at bsmith@ipbs.org or follow him on Twitter at @brandonjsmith5.