What Channel Is The Ohio Lottery Drawing On

Winners of Ohio's first Vax-a-Million drawing will be announced Wednesday night.

In the first Ohio Vax-a-Million drawings, Abbigail Bugenske of Silverton in Hamilton County won a $1 million cash prize and Joseph Costello of Englewood in Montgomery County will be given a full-ride college scholarship.

Wednesday marked the first of five drawings that will be held on consecutive Wednesdays.

Vax-a-Million: Learn more about Ohio's first Vax-a-Million winners

Roughly 2.75 million adults entered the Ohio Vax-a-Million cash drawing. Another 104,386 students between the ages of 12 and 17 entered the contest for five full-ride college scholarships.

The Ohio Lottery held the drawing Monday in Cleveland and state officials have had two days to verify that the winner meets the eligibility rules and has had at least their first COVID-19 shot. The winners were announced Wednesday on live television.

One entry is good for all five drawings, and the next drawing will include people who sign up at www.ohiovaxamillion.com by 11:59 p.m. Sunday. Participants must be Ohio residents who have received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine.

When is the next Ohio Vax-a-Million drawing?

Here are the four remaining dates for Ohio's Vax-a-Million lottery drawings

June 2, 2021
June 9, 2021
June 16, 2021
June 23, 2021

Gov. Mike DeWine announced the Ohio Vax-a-Million program to boost Ohioans' interest in getting vaccinated against COVID-19.

When was the lottery announced?

DeWine announced on May 12 that Ohio would use federal CARES Act money to fund five $1 million prizes and five full-ride college scholarships as a way to revive interest in the COVID-19 vaccinations.

Ohio Vax-A-Million lottery:Want to win the Vax-A-Million? Make sure you read the fine print

Ohio Vax-A-Million lottery:More than 2.7 million sign up for Ohio's first Vax-a-Million drawing

Has the lottery resulted in additional Ohio COVID-19 vaccinations?

DeWine said the program has exceeded his wildest expectations. The Ohio Department of Health said the program prompted an uptick in vaccinations across nearly all age groups after weeks of trailing interest.

Vaccinations among people age 16 and older increased 40% in the seven days following DeWine's announcement, a USA Today Network Ohio analysis found.

Other state and cities have expressed interest in copying DeWine's idea.