California Vaccine Pop-up beckons people with free weed

Long Beach, California organizations may have finally found a creative way to convince reluctant residents to get a COVID-19 vaccination: What does a free joint sound like?

To promote equitable distribution of the COVID-19 vaccine and safe practices for Long Beach residents, a group of organizations have come together to start Joints for Jabs LBC, a one-day pop-up vaccine clinic that has a free pre – rolled joint for those who take the plunge and get poked.

According to a press release, local organizations have joined the Healthy Long Beach campaign in partnership with the Long Beach Collective Association (LBCA) to legally distribute tokens that can be redeemed for a free pre-rolled joint that is only valid for one day.

Many other Joints for Jabs events took place, including last May in Union Square Park in New York City. Another program approved by the Washington State Liquor and Cannabis Board on June 7th gave state-licensed cannabis retailers permission to offer a pre-rolled joint in exchange for a vaccination. In Arizona, a pharmacy gave free edibles to customers who had received a vaccine.

Last January, Long Beach Forward launched the Healthy Long Beach door-to-door, face-to-face contact campaign to raise awareness of COVID-19 resources and promote fair vaccination practices. The campaign has so far reached over 10,000 households.

On Saturday, July 24th, the first 150 Long Beach residents aged 21 and over who will be vaccinated at the one-day pop-up clinic in Houghton Park will be hooked up while supplies last. Children are welcome to receive the vaccine minus the joint.

“We all want to have a safe summer and enjoy each other’s company even as the pandemic continues and recovery opens up,” James Suazo, executive director of Long Beach Forward, said in a statement. “Cannabis is part of our Long Beach culture, and to safely share a joint without contributing to the spread of COVID-19, we must all do our part to get vaccinated. With the Delta variant becoming the dominant COVID-19 strain in Los Angeles County, we’d like our unvaccinated neighbors to catch a free strain of marijuana instead so we can protect each other.

Suspicion of the FDA and the medical establishment reigns first, so the LBCA and other organizations hope that this particular benefit will be just enough to change some minds.

“The LBCA supports public health efforts,” said the organization. “Cannabis products offer safe access to alternative medicine. Supporting vaccination efforts for our communities is in line with the LBCA’s stance on promoting healthy lifestyles and prevention. The LBCA is happy to be part of this community campaign. The Jabs for Joints clinic on July 24th would not be possible without LBCA members, Cannafame’s Hesh-Pre-Rolls, VRX Labs and the Flight on Cherry pharmacy, thank you. ”

The one-day clinic will be held on Saturday, July 24th, 9:00 am to 1:00 pm at Houghton Park, 6301 Myrtle Ave, Long Beach CA 90805. Vaccinations and # Joints4JabsLBC tokens will be distributed to the first 150 Long Beach residents while supplies last. Children and young adults aged 12 to 20 can also be vaccinated but are not eligible for # Joints4JabsLBC tokens.

Joints for jabs: THC in the LBC

Long Beach Forward admits that cannabis is part of the city’s culture. Long Beach is ground zero for a distinctive musical sound – especially artists like Snoop Dogg, Nate Dogg, Warren G and Sublime. Like the rest of the California coast, it’s also generally very cannabis-friendly, which is why the campaign might actually work.

On July 6, 56.3 percent of Long Beach residents – just over half – received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine. But that is far from the collective goal of herd immunity. As seen across California, Long Beach residents ages 18 to 34 remain a significant portion of the unvaccinated, with only 51.1 percent being vaccinated according to the Long Beach City’s COVID-19 Digital Dashboard.

Additionally, city data also shows that vaccination injustices appear to be defined by zip codes, with 90813, 90805 and 90810 having the lowest vaccination rates between 43 percent and 50 percent, respectively. This could mean that some communities are disadvantaged in terms of vaccine resources.

The known global death toll from COVID-19 exceeded four million earlier this month. And in the last few months it has been dominated by the Delta variant. You can still die from COVID-19, especially if you haven’t decided to get vaccinated.

More information is available at www.lbforward.org/healthylb.