The governor of Ohio, Mike DeWine, announced the State of Ohio will be drawing $1,000,000 lottery numbers in a new lottery. The eligible participants? Vaccinated adults.

Governor DeWine tweeted on Wednesday:

“Two weeks from tonight on May 26th, we will announce a winner of a separate drawing for adults who have received at least their first dose of the vaccine. This announcement will occur each Wednesday for five weeks, and the winner each Wednesday will receive one million dollars." 

DeWine, a Republican, and his administration believed that spending $5,000,000 dollars on a covid vaccine lottery was the best way to incentivize vaccination.

In addition to this announcement, DeWine said that coronavirus restrictions would end in Ohio on June 2nd. The only exception would be nursing and assisted living homes. 

It’s not just adults that can get in on covid lotteries. Vaccinated adolescents from 12–17 will have a lottery of their own. The prize is a more modest full ride to a state college as opposed to a million dollars.

The governor acknowledged that he might be seen as crazy. He later tweeted:

“I know that some may say, 'DeWine, you're crazy! This million-dollar drawing idea of yours is a waste of money. But truly, the real waste at this point in the pandemic -- when the vaccine is readily available to anyone who wants it -- is a life lost to COVID-19."

Republicans should not be viewed as the party of fiscal responsibility even if they are less irresponsible than Democrats.