This Arlington man won $1 million just by getting the COVID-19 vaccine

An Arlington man is a millionaire after he got his COVID-19 shot in Arkansas while visiting family, according to a news release from the Arkansas Scholarship Lottery.

Gary Smith received a free scratch-off ticket when he went to get his vaccine recently. He claimed the prize July 19 in Little Rock, Arkansas.

The scratch-off lottery tickets are one way Arkansas is working to incentivize unvaccinated people to get the shot and become protected against the COVID pandemic that led the entire world to shutter storefronts and initiate stay-at-home orders.

Arkansas vaccine recipients, after getting their second dose of the vaccine, have the choice between a lottery ticket potentially worth $20 to $1 million or a $20 gift certificate for the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission. Smith chose the lottery ticket, and it changed his life, he said.

The Arlington man, who works with people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, said he’s going to pay bills and help family members with his winnings, according to the release.

Smith’s initial reaction was disbelief.

“I know they’re lying,” was his first thought, he told the Arkansas Scholarship Lottery in the news release.

As the 83rd person to win a million or more in the Arkansas lotto, Smith said when the bills are paid and he’s helped family, he plans to use the rest of the money to give his fiance the wedding and honeymoon of their dreams.

Other state incentives

Arkansas isn’t the only state to offer cash as an incentive to get vaccinated. In addition to the price the federal government pays for each full inoculation (ranging from $10 for the Johnson and Johnson vaccine to $39 for the Pfizer immunization, according to Forbes), some state governors have approved incentives like gift cards, gift certificates, full rides to college and, like in Arkansas, lottery tickets.

A 22-year-old Ohio mechanic won $1 million in a vaccine lottery in the state’s Vax-A-Million program and a 14-year-old boy won a full ride to college in the same week, according to CBS News.

Alabama, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, Washington, West Virginia, and the U.S. Territories of Guam and the Virgin Islands are all offering incentives from the state government to the general public, and a couple of others have incentives for government employees, according to the National Governors Association.

Incentives in Texas

While Texas is not currently offering any state-produced incentives to get the shot, some businesses and organizations have stepped in to promote immunization.

The Dallas Regional Chamber has a sweepstakes for vaccinated people.

Their Take Care of Business DFW website, meant to promote the vaccine to help businesses see a return of income by preventing COVID-19 spread, doesn’t list exactly what the prizes are.

Anybody who has been vaccinated can enter, though. All you have to do is get the shot, enter details like your name and address and upload a photo of your vaccine card.

The contest is open to anybody from Tarrant Dallas, Collin, or Denton counties older than 18 who has been vaccinated, according to the website. The sweepstakes ends on Aug. 31.