Those who received COVID-19 shots at the Kennedy Center in D.C. Thursday got more than inoculations, they also got to celebrate with a free beer.
At the Shot and a Beer pop-up vaccination event put on by DC Health, people received the single-shot Johnson & Johnson vaccine; and after rolling up their sleeves, they got a free beer provided by Solace Brewing Company.
鈥淎lways down for free beer so it doesn鈥檛 take much more than that to get me to come somewhere, and luckily they were giving out vaccines down here, too,鈥� law student Jacob Nagy said.
Nagy said he was waiting to get the shot until after his exams due to concerns that he might not feel well in the days following.
Patrick Ashley, senior deputy director at DC Health, said not only does this offer another location for people to get vaccinated, it gives those waiting or on the fence another reason to come out.
鈥淲e know that individuals have different reasons to get vaccinations at different times, and we know different incentives work for different people,鈥� Ashley said.
The event is especially geared toward younger individuals, some of whom may not feel they are susceptible to getting really sick from the virus.
鈥淭he reality is that we see young people that die or end in the hospital from COVID,鈥� Ashley said, adding that the health department is encouraging people of all ages to get vaccinated.
As of Thursday, the city had administered more than 520,191 doses since shots began going into arms earlier this year, which accounts for 22.3% of residents being fully vaccinated.
Free beer wasn鈥檛 the only motivation for some others who chose to get their shot at the Reach, the Kennedy Center’s most recent addition.
Evan Hays, a soon-to-be-graduate at The George Washington University, said he wanted to get the one-dose shot so he could be ready to start a new job in a couple of weeks.
鈥淲hen I saw that they were doing the J&J one again, I was really excited because it is going to make my life a lot easier,鈥� Hays said.
Anna Russell, who is originally from Denmark but comes to D.C. for work, attended the event to get the shot. She spent the last 14 months overseas and just arrived back. Russell said her first priority was getting the shot since she couldn鈥檛 get one in Europe.
While she didn鈥檛 take the city up on the beer, she called it a unique offer.
鈥淥nly in America would they offer something as fantastic as beer as incentive to get vaccinated,鈥� Russell said.
Semajh Daniels, of D.C., works at the Kennedy Center, but he came out to get the shot and free beer with his wife, Zora McCarthy.
鈥淗e lured me with beer,鈥� McCarthy said of her husband鈥檚 plan to turn this into a date night.
Daniels called it the perfect way for both of them to get vaccinated.
鈥淲e got the shot; we had a beer; we walked along the river; picturesque D.C. What more could you ask for?” Daniels said.
- Sign up for 91欧美激情 alerts
- Sign up for 91欧美激情鈥檚 coronavirus email newsletter
- Latest coronavirus test results in DC, Maryland and Virginia
- Coronavirus vaccine FAQ: What you need to know
- Latest vaccination numbers in DC, Maryland and Virginia
- Northam plans to lift Va. capacity restrictions June 15
- Hogan announces $25M program aimed at helping Md. youth recover from effects of pandemic
Looking for more information? D.C., Maryland and Virginia are each releasing more data every day. Visit their official sites here: | |
