Washington State will now allow adults to claim a free marijuana joint when they receive a COVID-19 vaccine shot. This is a part of a strategy to vaccinate more of its population in Washington.
The promotion, called “Joints for Jabs,” will be effective immediately and would run through July 12, was announced by the state’s liquor and cannabis board on Monday. The promotion applies only to joints not to other products like edibles and the board said it would allow the marijuana retailers to also participate to provide customers who are 21 or older with a prerolled joint at their stores when they received their first or second dose at an active vaccine clinic.
According to a New York Times database, 58 percent of people have received at least one dose so far in Washington and 49 percent of them are fully vaccinated. However, Washington is not the only state to offer a cannabis promotion. A similar campaign was recently announced by an Arizona dispensary that will be providing free marijuana joints or gummy edibles to Arizonans 21 and older who receive a vaccination.
Moreover, Washington’s liquor and cannabis board recently allowed for a free beer, wine or cocktail to residents with proof of vaccination. In the month of mid-April the U.S. pace of vaccination began to decline sharply and the cities have started promotions like free beer in New Jersey and a raffle to win full-ride college scholarships in New York and Ohio. Several states have held lotteries awarding cash prizes of $1 million or more.
Andy Slavitt, a White House virus adviser, has said the Biden administration was encouraging states to be creative — including through lotteries or other financial incentives — to get people vaccinated. The federal government is allowing states to use certain federal relief funds to pay for those types of programs.
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