Biden offers tax credit in vax push
Businesses can use tax credit to offset costs of paid leave for recovery
President Biden is offering a tax credit businesses can use to allow employees to get a coronavirus vaccine and recover from symptoms without lost wages in a push to get every American 16 and older vaccinated.
“No working American should lose a single dollar from their paycheck because they chose to fulfill their patriotic duty of getting vaccinated,” Biden said in a Wednesday press briefing.
He called on every employer to offer full pay to employees who need time off to get a vaccine and recover from any side effects.
Businesses with 500 employees or fewer can use the tax credit to offset the costs of paid leave for up to 10 work days at $511 per day, according to the plan. The IRS will be using money from the American Rescue Plan to fund the tax credits.
“Every employee should get paid leave to get a shot and businesses should know that they can provide it without a hit to their bottom line. There’s no excuse for not getting it done in the weeks ahead,” Biden said.
The White House is urging larger employers to provide the same benefits and also educate workers about the vaccine and encourage them to get a shot.
In Massachusetts, emergency leave legislation that was created due to the pandemic states employers have to provide paid sick leave for a number of COVID-related issues, including for immunization and recovery from side effects.
As of Wednesday, 5.3 million vaccine doses had been administered in the Bay State and 2.1 million residents are now fully vaccinated.
Biden’s announcement came as he hit his goal of administering 200 million shots in his first 100 days in office. A total of 216 million doses have been given out in the United States and 87 million people, about 26% of the population, are now fully vaccinated.
All Americans age 16 and older became eligible for vaccination on Monday, per federal mandate, “If you’ve been waiting your turn, wait no longer,” Biden said.
He added that more than 80% of people over 65 have gotten at least one shot and 90% of Americans now live within 5 miles of a vaccination site.
Despite the encouraging progress, Biden said it still isn’t time to let down our guard.
“If we let up now and stop being vigilant this virus will erase the progress we’ve already achieved,” Biden said. He added that the nation is still on track to “celebrate independence” from the virus on July 4 with small gatherings and a greater sense of normalcy.