Hoboken Businesses Will Get $1,500 'Vaccine Bonus' From Federal Funds

HOBOKEN, NJ — The city of Hoboken will award $1,500 bonuses from federal funds beginning next week to any business that has at least 75 percent of its staff vaccinated against COVID-19, the city said Tuesday. So far, 115 businesses have already qualified, the city said.

The news was part of a larger announcement Tuesday that the city will award $1.82 million in federal American Rescue Plan funds — meant to help struggling businesses and other entities amid the pandemic — to 179 Hoboken businesses that applied, starting next week.

The city had already made an announcement last month that they hope to give $1,000 to each of several hundred city workers who get or have already gotten vaccinated. That announcement stirred some controversy.

COVID numbers in Hoboken and New Jersey, which had been falling in spring amid increased vaccinations, have begun rising in the last two months, likely due to the highly transmissible Delta variant of the virus.

While vaccinated people can still get the virus, they are less likely to be hospitalized or die from it medical professionals say. New Jersey is among the 15 states with the lowest death rates in the country from the virus.

Still, this past Friday, 1,167 people in New Jersey were battling COVID in hospitals. Of those, 128 are on ventilators to help them breathe. On the Friday before that, on Sept. 3, 1,054 people in New Jersey were being treated in hospitals for COVID, 109 of those on ventilators.

On Monday, Hoboken Mayor Ravi Bhalla said nine people are battling COVID in Hoboken's hospital, eight unvaccinated and one vaccinated.

The Grant For Hoboken Businesses

Mayor Ravi Bhalla said Tuesday that the federal awards will go to 179 local businesses. Qualifying businesses who applied to the city’s Small Business Grant Program will receive an average of $9,800 through funding allocated to the city from the American Rescue Plan.

The $1.9 trillion Federal Rescue Plan, announced by the president in March, provides COVID-19 relief funds to states, entities, and businesses around the country.

Of the 179 Hoboken businesses that will be awarded grant funding through the city, 115 will also receive the $1,500 vaccine bonus. In the coming weeks, the city will also publish a list of these businesses on the city’s website, they said.

While some governments, such as in New York City, have offered small financial incentives for people to get vaccinated, and large businesses have done the same, the announcement by a city to give "covid bonuses" to businesses may be a first.

“This grant funding will provide additional relief that will help ensure that our mom-and-pop shops remain open, adding vibrancy to our mile-square," said Bhalla on Tuesday. "I thank the businesses and their employees who also heeded the call to get vaccinated. Together, we can reduce the spread of COVID-19 and find a path out of this pandemic."

Businesses can use the relief funding for COVID-19 related expenses incurred between Sept. 1, 2020, and July 28, 2021, including employee salaries, mortgage payments, business loan payments, equipment leases or finance payments, and utilities including electric, water, gas, phone, and more.

The city will make award notifications by the end of this week and begin distributing funds next week via wire transfers and checks.

The city noted past initiatives to support small businesses: Expanding outdoor dining, implementing open and summer streets programs, and providing free COVID-19 testing for small business employees.

Through the CARES Act, the city of Hoboken had partnered with Hudson County to also disperse $1.82 million in grant funding to small businesses in 2020.

Hoboken also provided financial assistance to small businesses through the Hoboken Relief Fund, which raised over $400,000 for impacted Hoboken businesses and individuals.

"I also thank Senator Menendez, Senator Booker, Congressman Sires, and the Biden Administration for working to provide this federal funding," Bhalla said Tuesday.

COVID Statistics This Week

More than 654,409 Americans died from COVID as of last Friday, up from 643,000 people the previous Friday.

Medical professionals say the COVID-19 vaccine is 95 percent effective against the virus, and while vaccinated people may have "breakthrough cases" — particularly among Delta — there is a lower chance of hospitalization or death for those vaccinated.

On Friday, Sept. 10, 1,167 people in New Jersey were battling COVID in hospitals. Of those, 128 are on ventilators. Here are prior weeks' numbers:

• Friday, Sept. 3, 1,054 people in New Jersey were being treated in hospitals for COVID, 109 on ventilators.
• Friday, Aug. 27, 1,022 people were hospitalized with COVID, 98 on ventilators.
• Friday, Aug. 20: 923 hospitalized, 73 on ventilators.

You can see which states have the highest recent death rates here.

'High' COVID Activity

This week, the Central East region including Hudson County and three other counties still showed still showed "high" COVID activity, according to New Jersey's latest weekly report.

The determination is based on metrics such as case rate and positivity rate. And it may be used in determining school districts' protocols and other health measures.

Where To Get Vaccinated Or Tested In Hoboken

Click here for this week's testing and vaccination schedule and sites in Hoboken.

Read More About COVID And NJ:

• The Latest Data, Details On Breakthrough COVID-19 Cases In NJ
• COVID Hospitalizations Spike In NJ As Delta Variant Spreads
• Hoboken Mom Urges: Please Listen to COVID 'Long-Haulers'
• 4 Things To Know About The Delta Variant Of Coronavirus In NJ
• New Jersey Town Says: Get Vaccinated Or No Spaghetti For You
• Rise In Child COVID Hospitalizations Prompts Vaccination Plea
• NJ Hospital Preps For COVID Surge As Kids Set To Return To School

More Information

• 98 percent to 99 percent of recent COVID deaths were unvaccinated people, according to one study earlier this summer.
• Here is information on vaccine side effects, including the most rare but severe effects.
• COVID survivors may suffer from long-term symptoms.

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