Whitmer to announce millions in sweepstakes to incentivize COVID vaccines

Lansing — Gov. Gretchen Whitmer will unveil an initiative Thursday offering cash prizes and college scholarships to encourage more Michigan residents to get their COVID-19 vaccines.

The effort, called "MI Shot to Win Sweepstakes," will give Michiganians who are vaccinated the chance to win more than $5 million and nine $55,000 college scholarships through a "lottery-style raffle," according to an advisory from the governor's office. It's being supported by Meijer and the Michigan Association of United Ways.

A press conference is planned for Thursday morning to provide more details.

Initially, this spring, Whitmer said Michigan law precluded state government from offering such a program. But she has since indicated her administration was exploring the possibility.

As of Wednesday, nearly 62% of Michigan residents age 16 and older have received at least their initial vaccine dose. The percentage has been inching upward slowly in recent weeks.

A little over 52% of residents age 16 and older are fully vaccinated.

Other states, including Ohio, Oregon and Maryland, have used similar programs to try to entice their residents to get vaccinated. Vaccinations in Ohio jumped 28% the weekend after Gov. Mike DeWine's "Vax-a-Million" initiative was announced on May 12, according to his state's health department.

During a White House briefing in May, Andy Slavitt, then-acting administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, called the lottery programs "very effective."

"Well, from the data we've seen, they appear to be working," Slavitt said. "And I think the reason they work is because the vast number of people who are not yet vaccinated are actually not opposed to getting vaccinated; they're just not prioritizing it very high."

In Ohio, residents age 12 to 17 who have received at least their first COVID-19 vaccination can enter for a chance to win one of five four-year full-ride scholarships, including room and board, tuition and books, to any Ohio state college or university. Ohio residents age 18 and older who have received their COVID-19 vaccination can win one of five $1 million prizes.

Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan, the Maryland Lottery and the Maryland Department of Health launched a "VaxCash" promotion in May, which planned to hand out a total of $2 million in cash prizes to 41 Maryland residents who have been vaccinated.

State Sen. Aric Nesbitt, R-Lawton, a former Michigan Lottery commissioner, has previously said he wasn't sure what would legally prevent Whitmer from a similar initiative in Michigan.

"It is something where you probably get a lot more free media doing that than spending $5 million elsewhere," Nesbitt said.

From January through May, the state has spent more than $7 million on vaccine-related advertising, according to the state Department of Health and Human Services.

cmauger@detroitnews.com