SAN ANTONIO — If you work for Bexar County, you could be in for a big payout, but only if you get or have had the COVID=19 vaccine.
In an incentive program passed Tuesday, county employees will get up to $1,000 in a rebate on their health insurance premium if they're fully vaccinated by Oct. 15. If they're part of a spouse’s program, they can be reimbursed up to $500.
The Bexar County Commissioners Court passed the measure as both an incentive for employees to get vaccinated and a reward for those who already have.
"I never ever liked the idea of saying, 'Well, let me give you an award to get a vaccination when everyone else has done the right thing,'” said Bexar County Judge Nelson Wolfe said. “So, this does it for everybody."
The proposal originally called for a deadline in December, but with the delta variant driving a spike in the community, the date was moved up to mid-October.
"I've seen, personally, that there are plenty of appointments available,” said Precinct 3 Commissioner Trish DeBerry. “There is incentive to get it done much quicker."
DeBerry, who put forward the proposal, said that the insurance rebates won't cost Bexar County taxpayers a cent because they make use of federal pandemic relief funds.
"We are not using taxpayer money associated with the program,” she said. “We do have federal funds that are available to be able to incentivize and we'll use those federal funds accordingly."
The county is exploring the possibility that some form of the rebates could also be offered to contractors who work for the county, such as custodians who clean county facilities.
“These folks that have worked so hard during the lockdown,” DeBerry said. “They were qualified as ‘essential workers.’ They should be able to qualify for some kind of a rebate for some kind of a rebate or some kind of incentive associated with getting the vaccine.”
Bexar County Clerk Lucy Adame-Clarke, who oversees 149 employees, believes the impact will go beyond county workers to their families.
"It's a trickle-effect," Adame-Clarke said. “If you do a reimbursement for county employees' insurance, then you'll see more families take their children to get vaccinated as our kids get ready to go back to school”
For DeBerry, one of the most important aspects of the measure is that it is not a mandate, and that it will encourage more people in Bexar County to get the vaccine while preserving their freedom of choice.
“It is not a mandate that you absolutely positively have to get vaccinated,” she said. “But it highly incentivizes people to reconsider maybe why they haven’t gotten vaccinated and maybe the opportunity to get vaccinated.”
Anyone who would like more information on the program can reach out to the Bexar County Manager.