Want to Win Cash? Here Are the States Offering a Lottery for Getting the COVID Vaccine.

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AP Photo/Tony Dejak

By Araceli Cruz

May 28, 2021

A 22-year-old has already won a $1 million lottery just for getting the COVID-19 vaccine. 

Some state governors are urging their residents to get the COVID-19 vaccine, but they realize a simple request might not be enough. So, perhaps offering cash—up to millions—might be the lucrative incentive that people need to line up and get the shot. And the cash motivation is working already in Ohio, which was one of the first states to offer a lottery for folks who get vaccinated. 

RELATED: Getting the COVID-19 Vaccine Just Got Easier. Here’s How to Get It Now.

The funds for the lotteries have been approved by the federal government and are being allocated by the American Rescue Plan. 

“Since the [lottery] announcement, available data suggests that shots are up 49% among people ages 16 and over in Ohio and have increased 36% among minorities and 65% among Ohioans living in rural areas. Vaccinations among 16- and 17-year-olds have increased 94%,” Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine wrote in The New York Times

Ohio’s first winner is a 22-year-old; Abbigail Bugenske won $1 million just for getting the COVID-19 vaccine. 

RELATED: What to Do if You Get Denied the COVID Vaccine Because You’re Undocumented

So, you want to be next? All you have to do to enter is get the COVID-19 vaccine. Here are the states offering cash prizes to those who get vaccinated: 

California: 

Ten winners will be selected on June 15 to receive $1.5 million each — prizes totaling $15 million. All Californians who have had at least one COVID-19 dose will automatically be entered. In addition, everyone in the state with at least one COVID-19 dose will be automatically entered to win big on “$50,000 Fridays.” Thirty winners will take home $50,000. Fifteen people will win on Friday, June 4, and another 15 will win on Friday, June 11.

Colorado: 

Colorado will award $1 million each week to five COVID-19 vaccine recipients starting on June 4. 

Kentucky: 

Residents who get the vaccine can win a $225,000 prize. 

Maryland:

The Maryland Lottery will offer a $40,000 prize every day to a randomly selected vaccinated resident from May 25 to July 3. Then, on July 4, the state will offer a jackpot of $400,000.

New York: 

Any adult who gets vaccinated at one of the ten state-run sites from May 24 to May 28 will be eligible to win a jackpot of $5 million. 

Ohio: 

An award of $1 million would go to five vaccinated adults, and a full-ride scholarship to Ohio public colleges will be awarded to five vaccinated teenagers.

Oregon: 

Vaccinated people could win lottery prizes ranging from $10,000 to $1 million. Residents 18 and older must receive at least one shot of the COVID-19 vaccine by June 27 to enter.

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