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COVID vaccination and social norms

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  • Jonathan Cook
  • Noah Newberger
  • Sami Smalling

Abstract

We quantify the impact of county‐level vaccination rates on vaccine uptake. While the marginal effect at current vaccination rates is modest, the overall impact is large. Moving from a 0% to 15% vaccination rate in a county is associated with an increase in the daily uptake of over 10 fold. Our results shed light on the rise and decline of vaccine hesitancy and imply an externality of vaccination programs. For Ohio's Vax‐A‐Million lottery, a back‐of‐the‐envelope calculation finds that there were an additional 30,000 vaccinations immediately following the lottery as a result of the increased vaccinations from the lottery.

Suggested Citation

  • Jonathan Cook & Noah Newberger & Sami Smalling, 2024. "COVID vaccination and social norms," Contemporary Economic Policy, Western Economic Association International, vol. 42(4), pages 660-682, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:coecpo:v:42:y:2024:i:4:p:660-682
    DOI: 10.1111/coep.12663
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