Alberta became the first Canadian province to create a millionaire through its vaccine lottery, a lucky participant won exactly 1 million Canadian dollars as the main prize of the special lotto incentive program.
The lucky winner is Tracey McIvor from Langdon, a hamlet located around 30 miles away from the city of Calgary. Mr. McIvor was quite lucky as his name was selected from no less than 1.7 million Albertans who have received at least one dose of an approved Covid-19 vaccine.
So far, 72.8 percent of eligible Albertans have received at least one dose of a Covid-19 vaccine, while 42.4 percent are already fully vaccinated. The government of the province introduced the lottery, among other incentives and prizes, in an attempt to inspire more and more of its citizens to get vaccinated and hit the 70 percent threshold as soon as possible.
There will be two more draws during the “Open for Summer Lottery”, each rewarding a random vaccinated citizen a prize of 1 million Canadian dollars. The upcoming draws will take place in August and September.
“It pays to get vaccinated, in more ways than one," Alberta Premier Jason Kenney said. The Premier added that the most significant prize is getting restrictions lifted as a result of the increased vaccination rate.
The province of Manitoba has also launched a vaccination lottery for its residents, offering 2 million Canadian dollars in cash prizes along with scholarships for students. Quebec is also considering such an incentive, with details set to be announced soon.