Rep. Steve Stivers, R-Ohio, wants to give $1,400 direct payments to people who receive the COVID-19 vaccine.
His proposal is counter to President Joe Biden’s plan, which includes $1,400 checks for most Americans on top of the $600 provided in the most recent COVID-19 bill, bringing the total to the $2,000 that Biden has called for.
''I hope the administration will look at that [vaccine] option because we actually buy something with our $1,400 — and that’s herd immunity,'' said Stivers during an interview with Yahoo Finance Live on Thursday.
Yahoo News noted that some GOP lawmakers have argued the Biden plan adds too much to the national debt.
''It should be debt for the right things,'' Stivers said. ''The quickest thing we need to do if we really want to help the American people is get this economy turned back on — get people back to work, get kids back in school, get ourselves some herd immunity, get the vaccine distributed as quick as we can and get the uptake rate up. That's why I'd be willing to accept a $1,400 stimulus check if people are willing to take the vaccine.''
Jeffrey Rodack ✉
Jeffrey Rodack, who has nearly a half century in news as a senior editor and city editor for national and local publications, has covered politics for Newsmax for nearly seven years.
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