Milwaukee is giving away $100 gift cards to residents who get their first Covid-19 vaccine dose

Milwaukee is offering an extra incentive to residents who receive their first dose of the Covid-19 vaccine. Starting Thursday, any eligible resident 5 years or older who gets their first dose at a Milwaukee Health Department vaccination clinic will receive a $100 gift card.

The gift cards will be given away on site at health centers and mobile clinics. You can find the complete hours and locations for those centers and clinics at milwaukee.gov/covidvax. 1,000 gift cards will be available.

The extra incentive comes as Milwaukee continues to stress the importance of vaccines. “Vaccination remains our strongest tool against the Covid-19 virus,” Milwaukee Health Commissioner Kirsten Johnson said in a statement. “It is heartbreaking to continue to see people lose their lives to Covid-19 when they could have been protected by the vaccine. We hope that this incentive will help those who are on the fence make the life-saving decision to get vaccinated.”

Right now, only 56.5% of City of Milwaukee residents 5 or older have received at least one dose of the vaccine, according to the Milwaukee Health Department. That's far lower than the health department had hoped. It means more than 250,000 city residents are eligible for the gift cards.

Meanwhile, Milwaukee County announced that it will give away free N95 masks through Feb. 4 from 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. at the Marcia P. Coggs Human Services Center. Health officials stress that N95 masks are more effective at preventing the spread of the highly contagious Omicron variant than cloth masks.

For more information on Covid-19 vaccines, visit Radio Milwaukee's vaccine resource page.