This fall, while Alabama tries to contain the spread of COVID-19, college football fans can collect $ 75 college bookstore gift cards if they get vaccinated on match days as part of a new initiative.
KICK COVID was announced Thursday by the Alabama Department of Public Health, a program that includes the provision of vaccination and testing sites on some games, player appearance in promotions, and the gift card giveaways to vaccinate the population.
“We all know our love for football here in Alabama,” said Gene Hallman, president and co-owner of the Bruno Event Team, a sporting event management company involved in the program.
The program will be available on September 25th at the University of Alabama and Auburn University Games, and at select September and October games.
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“We see the central aspect of this program in the fact that college football and the players themselves – in their own authentic, sincere voice – ask their fans and fellow students to get this vaccine.”
State Health Officer Scott Harris said he hoped vaccination could be increased in a state where college football games are a major event on people’s weekends. Alabama has one of the lowest vaccination rates in the country, ranking among the states for the percentage of people fully vaccinated and the bottom 10 for the percentage of people partially vaccinated.
“I think this is something that probably doesn’t work in every union state, but in the south, especially in Alabama, where college football is such an important part of everyone’s life … it’s a very successful program.”
Hallman said the $ 75 campus bookstore gift card was a way to say “thank you” to the newly vaccinated. The program is the state’s first cash award for vaccinations, although local areas and universities have already offered such freebies.
People can get the $ 75 campus bookstore gift card by getting vaccinated at the KICK COVID vaccination center on their team’s selected game day, or getting the first dose two weeks before the game and their vaccination card on the KICK COVID -Upload site. Only vaccinations started within 14 days of the selected game day are eligible.
Harris said the Alabama Department of Health used multiple sources of income to fund the program.
This is not the first time football has been used as a tool to push for vaccinations.
Alabama soccer coach Nick Saban and other athletes recorded a public service announcement earlier this year urging Alabamers to receive the COVID-19 vaccine.
“Football fans and college players want full stadiums this fall. Let’s make sure we can safely achieve this by getting vaccinated. Please get your COVID-19 vaccine, ”Saban said in the ad. “We want Bryant Denny Stadium to be loud again next season and Roll Tide!”
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