Would You Get a Covid Shot For a Lower Health Bill?
U.S. vaccination rates are still too low. Employers could start offering health-insurance discounts as an incentive to get a shot.
Get a Covid shot, lower your health bill? It could work.
Photographer: Alisha Jucevic/BloombergWith the highly transmissible delta variant spreading rapidly in the U.S. and Covid-19 vaccine uptake in some areas still disappointingly low, it makes sense to push every lever available to get people protected. One underused tool is is the cost of health coverage.
Health insurance is a significant expense for many Americans and could create powerful financial motivation for holdouts to get shots. Using it isn't just the right thing to do for public health as cases surge. Higher vaccination rates can also save money for health plans by reducing avoidable and expensive Covid cases. Further, extra costs don't just fall on the unvaccinated, but on their employers, colleagues via potential monthly premium increases, or other taxpayers.