Get a COVID vaccine: You could win a cruise or $5,000

Cindy Krischer Goodman, South Florida Sun-Sentinel
·3 min read

If peace of mind didn’t persuade you to get vaccinated, how about a cruise? Or Super Bowl tickets? Or four days in Bermuda?

CVS announced Thursday that it is starting a national contest to boost vaccination rates, the latest of several incentive programs across the country. On Wednesday, an Ohio woman won $1 million in that state’s Vax-A-Million lottery.

The efforts are designed to draw in people who have resisted COVID-19 vaccines, threatening to drag out the COVID-19 pandemic.

Anyone 18 or older is eligible for CVS’ prizes if they receive at least one dose of a vaccine by July 10 or register by then to get a shot. Trips, hotel stays and event tickets are all up for grabs:

•CVS Health: 50 $500 giveaways and five grand prize giveaways of $5,000 Visa gift cards to use toward reuniting with family.

•Norwegian Cruise Line: 100 seven-day cruises for two in a balcony stateroom to your choice of destination, including the Caribbean, Alaska and Europe.

•Procter & Gamble: trip to the Super Bowl next February in Los Angeles for two people, with game tickets, airfare and hotel.

•Bermuda Tourism Authority: five three night/four-day trips for two including airfare, hotel and roundtrip transportation.

•Hinge: 500 $100 gift cards for dates and one grand prize of a $5,000 gift card for an ultimate date experience for a winning couple

•iHeartMedia: VIP package for two to attend iHeartRadio Music Festival including first-class airfare, hotel, floor seats and backstage time with artists.

•smarTours: six escorted tours for two to an international destination, including airfare.

•Wyndham Rewards: five two-night weekend getaways and a grand prize of a seven-night getaway including airfare voucher.

CVS said winners will be drawn weekly with grand prizes selected at the end of six weeks. The contest covers shots at pharmacies, long-term care facilities or employer programs.

For more information and to enter as a Florida resident, go to cvs.com/onestepclosersweeps.

While 10.1 million people in Florida are vaccinated with one or more doses, that number represents less than half of the state’s population — and vaccination sites have reported a slowdown in demand. A new survey from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that 17.6% of adults are hesitant about receiving a vaccine.

In Ohio, vaccine incentives appear to be working. After the state announced it would give five $1million jackpots, the number of residents who received their first dose of a vaccine jumped 33% in a week, according to an Associated Press analysis of state data. Multiple other states — including Colorado, New York, Oregon and Maryland — have followed suit,

A total of 835 CVS Pharmacies in Florida offer Moderna, Pfizer and Johnson & Johnson vaccines. The two-dose Pfizer vaccine is available to anyone 12 or older at 645 of the Florida stores.

“Getting as much of the population fully vaccinated will bring us one step closer to all the things we’ve missed during the past 14 months, and keep our country moving in the right direction,” Dr. Kyu Rhee, senior vice president and a chief medical officer of CVS Health in a written statement.

Sun Sentinel health reporter Cindy Goodman can be reached at cgoodman@sunsentinel.com .