Biden has announced new incentives to increase vaccine rates Coronavirus pandemic News

Among the new efforts have been working with Uber and Lyft to offer vaccine travel and pay-as-you-go offers.

U.S. President Joe Biden on Tuesday announced new efforts to encourage more Americans to be vaccinated for COVID-19 as he seeks to achieve the goal of reopening the country. for July 4th.

During a virtual meeting with a bipartisan Biden government team, Biden announced measures to partner with Uber and Lyft to share services, as well as open vaccination sites in community schools, among others.

Biden aims to introduce 70 percent of U.S. adults by July 4 so that the country can safely reopen for celebrations and Independence Day holidays.

NEW: @lift and @Uber they have agreed to start offering free rides to 80,000 vaccination sites by July 4th.

– Andy Slavitt (@ aslavitt46) May 11, 2021

“To ensure that transportation is a lesser barrier, from May 24 to July 4, Uber and Lyft will offer free rides to those who come and go to vaccination sites,” Biden said at the meeting.

“I think that’s really getting worse,” he said.

Uber is already offering free or discounted rides. It announced 10 million such trips in December in addition to the 10 million free trips announced in March last year.

Lyft has also said it will fund the rides.

“The route code will have $ 15 coverage each way, based on previous routes provided at vaccination sites, which we hope will cover most, if not all, of the pilot fares,” the company said.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), new COVID-19 infections, hospitalizations, and deaths have been declining in recent weeks. And according to the latest statistics, 45% of Americans they received at least one dose of COVID-19, and 32.8 percent are now fully vaccinated.

But in recent weeks the demand for vaccines has dropped significantly, and the administration has forced people to learn new ways to motivate them to get vaccinated.

According to the CDC, the average seven-day vaccine dose is 1.9 million a day, down from 3.2 million in mid-April.

“After the rapid acceleration in vaccine rates, we are seeing a slow progress in U.S. vaccines,” the CDC wrote on its website.

“This is not surprising, given the previous view of vaccinating people at higher risk. Moreover, people who are eager to be vaccinated when they got the right can already be vaccinated by the increased supply,” according to the site.

Some states are doing their best to encourage more people to get vaccinated. In New York, officials reported that vaccines will be offered at city subway stations without an appointment. Owners will be offered free seven-day subway tickets.

Tomorrow (weddings) until Sunday:

Pop-up vax sites that offer J&J at New York subway stations and train stops. No application required.

Metrocard is free for anyone who takes a 7-day subway shot. If you get two free round-trip tickets on LIRR / MetroNorth. #JabAndRide pic.twitter.com/gtcQwUOR5D

– Mark D. Levine (@MarkLevineNYC) May 11, 2021

On Tuesday, Biden provided funding through the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) for ground efforts to promote vaccines, such as through telephone banking and door-to-door testing.