This study focuses on various policies that the US Federal government could enact to increase COVID-19 vaccination rates and stabilize the spread of COVID-19 with herd immunity. It compares a vaccine mandate enforced with a fine to various incentives such as tax rebates and sporting tickets. It also takes into account the accessibility of vaccination centers, measured by the proximity of vaccination centers from residencies, as well as combinations of these different policy attributes. The target population for this study are all Americans 18 years and older who have not received a dose of a COVID-19 vaccine. Below are lists of all possible values of each attribute included in the choice questions:
By collecting choice information on these potential attributes, we hope to gain insight on what incentives and/or penalties are the most effective in getting non-vaccinated U.S. residents above the age of 18 vaccinated.
We found that respondents are more likely to take the vaccine with incentives, as we saw a larger probability of vaccination with incentives, and that respondents seem resistant to penalties, as penalties drastically decreased the probability of vaccination. We particularly saw an increase in vaccination probability with grocery store gift cards as incentives, and a slight increase in vaccination probability for vaccination centers within 1-3 miles of residences. However, our confidence in whether the rest of the population will have the same preferences as the respondents is limited by the high confidence interval and major variation within subgroups.
Despite the rollout of COVID-19 vaccines, vaccine hesitancy prevented the United States from achieving herd immunity, the level of immunity that a population needs to control the spread of a virus. Below is a chart depicting the number of daily vaccinations over time as a percentage of the population, followed by a chart depicting the percentage of the American population that is vaccinat