Ohio woman wins $ 1 million COVID vaccine lottery

The money for coronavirus vaccines goes to Ohio.

Abbigail Bugenske won a million dollars after being vaccinated against COVID-19, and Joseph Costello received a college scholarship, according to the Vax-A-Million program website.

Bugenske currently works as an engineer in Silverton and was overwhelmed by the financial shot in the arm, according to Fox 8 in Cleveland.

Bugenske was vaccinated before the competition was announced and wants to encourage others to do the same, her mother told the local broadcaster.

14-year-old Joseph Costello posed with Ohio Governor Mike DeWine after receiving free tuition at a state university.

“Congratulations, Joseph! You just won a full ride college scholarship! If you are between 12 and 17 years old and have had at least one dose of the vaccine, you could be next! “, The Republican tweeted.

The Northmont High School student who wants to go to the University of Dayton, Miami University or Ohio State University spoke to NBC 4 in Columbus.

“I’m very happy to have my scholarship awarded, but I’m still taking the moment,” said Costello.

Buckeye State is still giving away $ 4 million in prizes and will officially announce the next winners on Memorial Day.

Almost 2.8 million residents have already entered the raffle and been vaccinated, health officials said.

“We are pleased that this has inspired so many Ohioans to get vaccinated, and we are excited to announce the first round winners,” DeWine said in a press release.

After Ohio launched its lottery program, New York followed suit with its own $ 5 million vaccine lottery sweepstakes called “Vax and Scratch”.

Previously, officials in front of New Yorkers had incentivized chintzy vaccinations, such as a weekly MetroCard and two-week Citi Bike membership.