An American woman has won two million USD for getting vaccinated for Covid-19. Christine Duval is a resident of Michigan who won the state’s vaccination lottery on monday.
“MI Shot to Win Sweepstakes” is a program launched to encourage
more Michiganders to get COVID-19 vaccinations. It allows all residents of the state who have received at least one dose of a coronavirus vaccine to participate.
Christine Duval, a resident of Michigan since 13 years, won the grand prize of the program. Along with her husband and three children, Christine got vaccinated in April. After winning $2m, she said that the money would help her achieve all of herr dreams.
“I plan to use the funds to pay for my children’s college education and to renovate our home. I want to donate some of my winnings to support mental health care. We are really lucky, and we want to give back to those in need,” Duval said.
Other than the $2 million grand prize Duval won, a $1 million prize and daily drawings of $50,000 are included in awards for adults who have taken at least one vaccine shot.
The lottery-style Michigan program ran from July 1-30 and also provides tuition money for kids ages 12 to 17 who got the vaccine and several college scholarships for young people.
The goal of the lottery was to get at least 70 per cent of Michiganders receiving minimum one dose of a coronavirus vaccine. Michigan state vaccination rate is currently 65 per cent.
In July, during which the lottery ran, first dose vaccinations increased from 28,770 in the first week of July to 41,150 in the last. American health suthorities claim the sweepstakes were successful in ramping up vaccinations over the summer.
Governor of Michigan Gretchen Whitmer thanked the efforts of Michiganders who got vaccine shots in a press conference on Monday.
“Every public health expert will tell you the middle of the summer always shows lower vaccination rates than any other time of year whether it’s for chickenpox, measles, or Covid-19. In June, for example, we saw our vaccinations declined week-over-week for that whole month. But the sweepstakes helped Michigan reverse that trend,” the governor said.
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