D.C. Mayor Pressures Children to Receive Coronavirus Vaccine with VISA Gift Cards, Free Apple AirPods for Getting Jab

A student at Carlin Springs Elementary School receives an H1N1 flu vaccination January 7,
MANDEL NGAN/AFP via Getty Images

Washington, DC, Mayor Muriel Bowser announced Thursday the city will offer cash and goodies to children from August 7 as gifts for those who receive their first shot of the coronavirus vaccine.

Bowser previewed the August reward program saying, “All DC youth can claim their free COVID-19 [Chinese coronavirus] vaccine” at three locations in D.C., adding the “youth can receive a $51 VISA gift card.”

Additional prizes will see, “The first 400 youth to get vaccinated at each site will have the option to forgo their gift card and instead receive a pair of AirPods.”

She revealed other enticements, saying “parents/guardians will also get one $51 VISA gift card,” adding the gift cards are “per child vaccinated,” which could be lucrative for families with multiple children.

“All District youth who get vaccinated or who have already been vaccinated will also be eligible to win an iPad or a college scholarship worth $25,000,” per the announcement.

The announcement also mentioned, “All of the public schools that serve students between the ages of 12 and 17 — will also receive microgrants to fund their own events and prizes for students who get vaccinated.”

The mayor also flagged the nation’s capital surrendered to the Chinese coronavirus by restoring the indoor mask mandate within the city over the weekend – regardless of vaccination status.

The mandate will go back into effect early Saturday morning, July 31, at 5:00 a.m. for everyone older than two years of age.

The mayor’s announcement comes in the wake of President Joe Biden’s Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) announcement earlier in the week that it will backtrack on its previous guidance to recommend individuals, even those vaccinated, mask up in certain settings.

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