March 30, 2021 (LifeSiteNews) – Free glazed donuts aren’t the only incentives now offered to Americans to encourage them to receive coronavirus vaccines.
In a push to encourage people to receive experimental coronavirus shots, a diverse range of companies are offering free products to customers who provide proof of having gotten a coronavirus vaccine from Moderna, Pfizer, or Johnson & Johnson. Incentives include marijuana, cheesecake, and arcade tokens, according to a report by the Wall Street Journal on Sunday.
Krispy Kreme made headlines last week with the announcement that it would offer free daily Original Glazed donuts to vaccinated patrons through 2021. The donut chain was criticized for the move, with skeptics pointing out the correlation between obesity and increased severity of COVID-19 symptoms.
According to the CDC, obesity may triple the risk of hospitalization due to COVID-19.
But Krispy Kreme isn’t alone in offering free goodies in exchange for proof of vaccination, which right now for Americans is a wallet-sized paper vaccination record card.
The Wall Street Journal reported that companies “ranging from marijuana dispensaries to arcades” are rushing to advance promotional giveaways to incentivize vaccination.
These include Michigan-based marijuana dispensary “Greenhouse of Walled Lake,” which is offering a free joint with proof of vaccination (the program is called “pot for shots,” the Journal cheerily reported). The Brooklyn location of Junior’s Restaurant and Bakery began dishing out free mini cheesecakes to vaccinated New Yorkers on Monday. Free fries and chips are available to patrons of Super Duper Burgers and Uno Dos Tacos in San Francisco. Midwest arcade chain Up-Down is giving away arcade tokens to gamers who have gotten the jab.
The increase in corporate incentive programs comes as Americans are getting injected at a rate of 2.62 million per day, according to a tweet from White House COVID-19 Data Director Cyrus Shahpar.
The CDC reports that 28.6 percent of the overall U.S. population have received at least one dose and 15.8 percent have been fully vaccinated.
Yet despite steadily increasing vaccinations and beyond corporate promotions which depend upon consumer buy-in, the specter of compulsory vaccination looms large.
The beginning of vaccine passports
On Friday New York Governor Andrew Cuomo announced the launch of Excelsior Pass, a boarding-pass style app enabling New Yorkers to prove vaccination status to gain entry to businesses and social venues.
While the pass is officially opt-in, the New York governor’s webpage makes clear that Excelsior is meant to become part of daily life.
According to the government webpage, “Major venues have already announced they will begin utilizing this technology in the coming weeks, including Madison Square Garden in New York City beginning next week and the Times Union Center in Albany. Beginning April 2, Excelsior Pass will expand to smaller arts, entertainment and event venues.”
New York’s plan may become a reality for Americans across the country. The Washington Post reported Sunday that the Biden administration is working with private companies to come up with a “standard” method of implementing “credentials,” (i.e vaccine passports), to enable Americans to prove their vaccination status in order to re-enter society.
It is unclear whether these moves will evolve into official mandates. How much freedom individual Americans will have to refuse the jab is also unclear, since corporate and institutional mandates may bear much the same weight as federal edicts if the ability to work, shop, and attend church and school is curtailed for those who decline to be injected.
Reporting on the first lawsuit filed in the U.S. against a coronavirus vaccine mandate, LifeSite’s Raymond Wolfe suggested Friday that “it may not be licit to be required to take the jab” as a condition of employment since “Pfizer, Moderna, and Johnson & Johnson vaccines are under investigation by the FDA, pending licensing.”
To date, none of the coronavirus vaccines on the market are approved by the Food and Drug Administration. Instead, the FDA has allowed the vaccines to be distributed under an Emergency Use Authorization (EUA).
According to the FDA, an EUA is “a mechanism to facilitate the availability and use of medical countermeasures, including vaccines, during public health emergencies, such as the current COVID-19 pandemic.”
The FDA acknowledges that EUAs permit the use of “unapproved medical products, or unapproved uses of approved medical products” in situations where “there are no adequate, approved, and available alternatives.”
In a press conference Monday Florida Governor Ron DeSantis said he would use emergency executive action to ban vaccine passports in the Sunshine State.
“It’s completely unacceptable for either the government or the private sector to impose upon you the requirement that you show proof of vaccine to just simply be able to participate in normal society,” the governor said.
LifeSiteNews has produced an extensive COVID-19 vaccines resources page. View it here.