A 23-year-old motorcycle mechanic has won the top $1 million prize in Washington state's vaccine incentive lottery.
Gov. Jay Inslee presented the south King County resident with an oversized check at a news conference Friday. The winner, only identified as Kameron M., said he didn't even know about the lottery until his mother got a call from the state Lottery.
Washington is among several states that created lotteries in hopes of increasing the pace of vaccination. This week, the state hit the governor's goal of 70% of people age 16 and older getting at least one dose of vaccine.
The previous four drawings, held throughout June, were for cash prizes of $250,000. Winners included a Yakima resident, a Spokane nursing student and a Walla Walla food-service worker. Previous prizes also included Guaranteed Education Tuition credits for vaccinated residents ages 12 to 17, airline tickets, sports tickets, video-game consoles and other prizes.
Drawings for a separate lottery that applies to military, military staff and family members who were vaccinated through the Department of Defense, Veterans Affairs or the National Guard start next week.
