30,000 receive COVID vaccine grant payouts

Some 30,000 persons have received $10,000 each under the Conditional Cash Transfer for the Vaccinated Grant.

This was disclosed by Information Minister Fayval Williams at Post- Cabinet Press Briefing on Wednesday. In July, the Government decided to provide an incentive for persons 60 years and older who decided to get vaccinated.

The grant is an incentive by finance ministry for fully vaccinated persons 60 years and older, once the health ministry’s records confirm that the individual has received their jabs.

Williams shared that of the 41,000 applications received, 35,000 were validated. Funds were transferred to the remittance companies selected by 30,000 of the applicants and another 5,000 applications were being processed for payment yesterday. The remaining 6,000 applications were being checked.

The programme, which began on July 15, was administered digitally using the

COVID Allocation of Resources for Employees (CARE) Programme platform.

In June, speaking at the launch of the incentive programme, Finance Minister Dr Nigel Clarke said he was particularly interested in making the 60 and over cohort a focus as mostly elderly have fallen victims to the deadly COVID-19.

“The COVID- 19 pandemic has had a disproportionately fatal impact on persons age 60 and over. Figures from the Ministry of Health show that for Jamaica, 75 per cent of those who have died from COVID-19 are from the age group 60 and over,” he said. “The restrictions don’t go until this vulnerable population is no longer vulnerable.”