Vaccine lottery programs were introduced by some states in an attempt to incentivize covid-19 vaccination. It’s no secret how big a fan Americans are of lottery games so lottery-related incentives were the best to motivate people to get vaccinations.
One such state that is taking part in the vaccine lottery program in Maryland and which has already announced its first winner. The winner won a fortune of $40,000 after participating in the vaccine lottery games that go by the title VaxCash.
The vaccinated winner is said to be from Baltimore County and has full privilege to maintain their anonymity.
It is the Maryland Department of Health that has the details and information of the winner. It is not until they reveal it to the lottery that the lottery will get hold of the details. According to Carole Gentry, Managing Director of communications of the Maryland Lottery, the health department would need to take permission from the winner.
Up until now almost 56% of people in Maryland have got their first dose of vaccine which is a big achievement. The Maryland Lottery has been tasked to assess if such lottery incentives have played a role in getting people to vaccinate.
According to the lottery officials in Ohio since the introduction of the lottery, the demand for vaccination in Ohio has gone up by 28%. This increase shows that the lottery incentive has had a positive impact on the vaccine drive. The Maryland Lottery is expecting a similarly positive result in Maryland as well.
The Maryland Lottery’s Managing Director answered some questions related to the vaccine lottery. About the eligibility, she said that anyone 18 and above residing in Maryland and who’s vaccinated is eligible to participate in the lottery. However, excluded from this criterion are those who were vaccinated at the federal facility. She added that this was because the information with respect to those vaccinated at federal facilities wasn’t shared with Maryland’s health department.
She urged people to get vaccinated in order to be able to participate in the lottery and win amazing prizes. Who doesn’t want to become richer just by getting vaccinated for your own good, it’s like killing two birds with one stone.
Gentry reminded me that thirty-nine days remained for the $40,000 lottery game and the grand prize. It is a reminder for all the prospective players to hurry up with their vaccine doses in order to not miss the chance.
Once someone has won the Maryland Department of Health contacts the person instead of the Maryland Lottery. The winning person can either consent to have their information released or chose an alternate option.
Before devising the plan for the vaccine lotteries, the Maryland Lottery took tips from another state lottery such as Ohio and Kentucky. Now Maryland Lottery is in a position to offer tips to other state lotteries wanting to take this initiative to expand vaccine roll-out.