Due to the impact of COVID-19 on U.S. Mint production facilities, when the 2020 Uncirculated Coin set goes on sale Nov. 30, the Uncirculated 2020-W Jefferson 5-cent coin once intended as a premium will not be included with sets purchased.

Production of the 20 coins in the set — 10 apiece from the Philadelphia and Denver Mints — is sufficient to create 213,000 sets maximum, according to U.S. Mint officials.

The maximum mintage is the lowest since 1959, when 187,000 Uncirculated Coin sets were issued and silver was still part of the alloy for all coins except the Lincoln cent and Jefferson 5-cent coin.

The set will be priced at $25.25.

Mint officials were asked Oct. 8 whether trial strikes had been produced (the Mint early in 2020, released photographs of the coin). As of Oct. 9, no answers had been received.

According to an Oct. 6 U.S. Mint press release, “Due to the effects of COVID-19 at the Mint’s manufacturing facilities, this set has a limited production quantity of 213,000. In addition, we are not able to include the premium West Point nickel with an uncirculated finish as previously planned. This change was necessary to free up manufacturing resources for other legislatively-mandated products that will be released for sale in 2020.”

The 20-coin 2020 Uncirculated Coin set will include, from the Denver and Philadelphia Mints each, one Lincoln cent, Jefferson 5-cent coin, and Roosevelt dime, five America the Beautiful quarter dollars, a Kennedy half dollar and a Native American dollar.

The U.S. Mint included special 2020-W Jefferson 5-cent coins as premiums for customers who ordered the 2020-S Proof set and the 2020-S Silver Proof set.

The 2020-W Jefferson 5-cent coin issued as a bonus with each standard Proof set has a Proof finish with laser-frosted devices on mirrored fields.

For the Silver Proof set, the finish for the 2020-W Jefferson 5-cent coin is a Reverse Proof, with Proof devices on laser-frosted fields.

As of Oct. 4, the U.S. Mint recorded sales of 370,325 of the standard Proof sets at $32 each and 277,303 of the Silver Proof sets at $63.25 each.

Continuation

The 2020-W 5-cent coin program is a continuation of a similar program by the Mint in 2019. The United States Mint produced 2019-W Lincoln cents in three different finishes and used them as premiums for annual sets.

A standard Proof 2019-W Lincoln cent was included separately “in clear United States Mint plastic wrap” with the standard 2019-S Proof set. The 2019-S Silver Proof set was accompanied by, as a premium in separate packaging, an 11th coin, a Reverse Proof 2019-W Lincoln cent. The 2019 Uncirculated Mint set, which also includes 10 coins each from the Denver and Philadelphia Mints, had, as its premium, the 21st coin in the set, a 2019-W Lincoln cent with Uncirculated finish.

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