Children, vaccines, and financial incentives

Abstract

Recent studies have been analyzing and measuring the efficacy of the use of financial incentives to increase the Covid-19 vaccine uptake. To the best of our knowledge, this paper is the only study available in the literature that aims to measure the effect of financial incentives on vaccine rates among children. This paper explores the effects of a specific financial incentive on parents’ vaccination decisions for their children. Using data from a regional practice, where students aged 12 and older received $50 gift cards per Covid-19 vaccination dose, we use various methodologies (synthetic control, linear regression, and difference-in-differences) to approximate the effects of financial incentives on vaccine rates. Our analysis reveals that gift cards increase vaccination rates by 2.64–4.23 percentage points from a baseline rate of 38 percent, concluding that financial incentives, in conjunction with other incentives and policies, can be considered to increase the rate of vaccines for 12- to 17-year-olds.