NEW YORK (1010 WINS) – Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced another incentive for New Yorkers to get the COVID-19 vaccine—those who do so next week will get a free state lottery ticket and could win $5 million.
Cuomo said the “major statewide vaccination incentive” called “Vax and Scratch” runs from Monday, May 24, through Friday, May 28.
The pilot program will start at 10 of the state's mass vaccination sites, including the Javits Center in Manhattan, Medgar Evers College in Brooklyn, York College in Queens, Bay Eden Senior Center in the Bronx, SUNY Stony Brook in Suffolk County, and the National Guard Armory in Yonkers.
“Get a vaccination and get a lottery ticket for the $5 million Mega Multiplier Lottery,” Cuomo said. “If you had to buy the ticket, it’s $20. So in essence, get a vaccination and you get a free $20 scratch-off ticket for the Multiplier game.”
While the “Vax and Scratch” ticket has a first prize of $5 million, there are a number of prizes that go down to $20.
“The chances of winning something in this program are one in nine,” Cuomo said. “If you were undecided about getting a vaccine or dubious about getting a vaccine, now you have an added bonus.”
Only residents 18 and older are eligible, according to a press release.
New York has fully vaccinated about 43% of its 20 million residents, above the national average of 37.8%.
Still, Cuomo said the pace of vaccinations has slowed: New York has recorded an average of 123,806 daily shots in arms over the past 14 days. That's down 43% from 216,040 as of April 12.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Related
Related
