Labor has proposed a $300 payment to persuade people to get fully vaccinated. The cash incentive would go to everybody who has had the two jabs by the beginning of December.
"This support would be a further incentive for Australians to be fully vaccinated and would deliver a much-needed shot in the arm for businesses and workers struggling from lockdowns made necessary by the Morrison government's failures with the vaccine rollout," Labor Leader Anthony Albanese said.
Is it a revolutionary idea?
Incentives are not new. Parents who want to put their children into childcare already have to get those children vaccinated or lose tax benefits. Under "No Jab No Play, No Jab No Pay", parents of unvaccinated children don't get the Family Tax Benefit or help with child care fees.
Governments have been putting plenty of money into people's pockets to stay employed and providing travel vouchers go on holiday. Why can't we pay people to get vaccinated?
Professor Anthony Scott
Victoria offers $250 to some people on benefits to shop for the best electricity and gas deal.
Some other countries offer cash to families when children attend school or get health check-ups. The research indicates that the health of the wider community improves, and not just that of the families directly getting the cash.
And in America
Incentives are rife. In New Jersey, there's the "shot and a beer" program, those who get vaccinated get a free beer.
In Ohio, there 's a million dollar pot of money to be shared by five vaccinated Ohioans who win a lottery. No jab, no entry.
And in New York, there's a ticket to the ball game, either the Yankees or the Mets.
President Biden announced a program to give free trips to and from vaccination sites.
Do incentives work?
For the first year of the pandemic, there was little incentive to get vaccinated. Australians seemed safe from infections compared to people in other countries.
"Why should people bother to get vaccinated now if they can't travel anyway until mid-2022 or later?" as Professor Anthony Scott of the Melbourne Institute of Applied Economic and Social Research put it.
He is a fan of incentives: "Governments have been putting plenty of money into people's pockets to stay employed and providing travel vouchers go on holiday. Why can't we pay people to get vaccinated?"
By and large, cash incentives don't seem to work when it's about changing long-term behaviour (like losing weight) but they have some effect when it's a one-off action (like having a vaccination or going to a clinic for a check-up).
Sticks or carrots?
Banning the unvaccinated from work or travel or a venue may be more effective than giving them an incentive to get the jab.
According to Professor Scott: "We know that losing something has more of an impact on behaviour than gaining something, and penalties like this could increase vaccination rates amongst those who are hesitant.
"Losing our freedom to travel, to go shopping, or go to restaurants is something we all experienced during lockdown and do not want to experience again."
Israel introduced a "green pass" which proved the holder had been vaccinated. It let the holder into places like gyms, concerts, hotels, theatres, restaurants and bars.
Politics
Some academics say that targeted programs work best - give the money to those who are reluctant to nudge them over the line. These may be younger people or people from particular ethnic or religious groups or even parts of the country.
But the politics goes against that. Those who have been vaccinated might claim they had lost out by doing the right thing. Should the hyper-rich get a $300 payment?
The cost would be around $6 billion. Could the money be better spent?
Even if it is a good idea, might it work against Labor? If the party were trying to counter an image of being too free with taxpayers' money, would the suggestion of cash for jabs play badly in an election? Nobody knows the answer to that.
