Oregon governor creates COVID-19 vaccine lottery with $1 million jackpot: 'This is not meant to be a bribe'

Oregon Gov. Kate Brown announced Friday that vaccinated residents will be entered to win lottery prizes ranging from $10,000 to $1 million.

As vaccination rates have begun to fall, states have turned to less conventional methods in an attempt to entice residents to get the jab–a special lottery.

Ohio was the first to launch such an endeavor with New York, Maryland, and now Oregon joining in as well. At Friday's live-streamed news conference, Brown justified the decision. "We will need to pull on every lever we have," she said.

"So if you've been waiting to get a vaccine or you just haven’t gotten around to it yet, we're going to give you an extra incentive. How about a chance to win a million dollars?" she added. The governor went on tell Oregonians that vaccinating against COVID-19 "can save your life and just maybe make you a millionaire."

Ashby Monk, executive director of the Stanford Global Projects Center, was quick to dismiss claims that the lottery was created to bribe Oregonians to get vaccinated. "This is not meant to be a bribe. It's an incentive," he said.

The lottery, which has been named "Take Your Shot Oregon," will be held on June 28, and according to The Oregonian, "one lucky vaccinated Oregonian will receive a $1 million jackpot," while "thirty-six others–one from each Oregon county–will win $10,000 prizes."

A youth lottery was also created. Five winners will each receive $100,000 contributions to Oregon College Savings Plan accounts in their names with money that can be put towards any form of higher education, including trade school.

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo released details regarding his state's COVID-19 vaccine lottery on Thursday, stating that vaccinated adults will have, along with protection from the coronavirus, "a chance to win up to $5 million!"