Washington State approves «a joint for a vaccine» program»

Washington state dispensaries have received government approval to offer free joints to adults who have received the COVID-19 vaccine.

As part of the «Joints for Jabs» operation, stores are Cannabis Licensed dispensaries can offer a single pre-rolled joint to residents over 21 who get vaccinated at an on-site clinic before July 12, in an effort to combat declining vaccination rates.

According to the Washington Department of Health, less than half of residents aged 18 to 34 are fully vaccinated, and only 52% have received their first dose. The department reports that 63% of all Washington residents aged 16 and older have started getting vaccinated so far.

Last week, Governor Jay Inslee announced a series of new measures to encourage more Washington residents to get vaccinated. These incentives include cash raffles (with prizes of up to $2 million), tickets to sporting events, assistance with higher education and tuition costs, airline tickets…

The state’s goal is to reopen on June 30 or once 70% of the state’s residents have received their vaccine.

«These generous programs will encourage more Washingtonians to get vaccinated against Covid,» Mr. Inslee said in a statement last week. «I hope people will see this as an opportunity to reopen even sooner than June 30th if we can stay motivated, stay informed, and get more people vaccinated more quickly throughout June,» the governor said.

Washington State Health Secretary Dr. Umair Shah hopes programs like the «Joints for Jabs» initiative will encourage people to get vaccinated for the first time.

«Our state has made tremendous progress, with more than half of the population aged 16 and over fully vaccinated, but there are still far too many people who have not started getting vaccinated,» warned Dr. Shah. «We hope this effort will encourage people to get vaccinated to protect themselves and their communities as we head towards reopening at the end of this month.»

Washington isn't the first state to use cannabis as a tool to guide people toward vaccination. Arizona launched a similar initiative at the beginning of the month and one clinic even chose to host a vaccination clinic with free vaccines for the public.