Thanks to a generous group of people and corporations, Australians have a million more reasons to get the COVID jab. Every day in October, the ‘Million Dollar Vax’ campaign is giving away 100 gift cards worth $1,000 and, on November 5, one very lucky Aussie will score a cool $1 million in cash.
What’s the catch? There isn’t one. This competition is open to all Australians over 18 who’ve had at least one COVID jab by the end of October. It costs nothing to enter and the online entry form requires little more than your contact details. It’s run by a group of businesses and philanthropists that have volunteered their time, money and resources.
The ‘Million Dollar Vax’ is a simple, well-delivered example of philanthropy at its best. The work of 20 or so people and organisations, coming together and enacting a lottery-style solution to Australia’s lagging vaccination rate - one that The Grattan Institute proposed months ago.
This initiative comes as the country prepares to start reopening - as soon as October 11, for those of us in NSW. It seeks to reward Australians who choose to get vaccinated now rather than waiting, which is something that Paralympian Kurt Fearnley compellingly pleaded for, on behalf of the disability community, last week.
Kurt made the point that, once restrictions are lifted, the brunt of COVID will not be felt equally. People with disabilities are at greater risk of suffering a severe reaction to the virus. Even at 70% double-vaccinated - the target at which NSW will start opening up - experts have warned that the disability community will see a significant surge in deaths.
This isn’t good enough - and it needn’t be the case.
Around 10% of Australians can’t, or won’t, get vaccinated, which leaves around 20% who plan to get the jab but are hanging back. These people need to pick up the phone, seek medical advice and get vaccinated now, not later, to accelerate the vaccine rate and save lives.
Given our country’s love of a flutter, I’d wager this million-dollar lottery could get things moving.
One of the organisations behind the Million Dollar Vax is The Summer Foundation, a not-for-profit working to keep young people with disability out of residential aged care. They hope this campaign will get Australians with disabilities safely - and more speedily - back into the community, and help people feel more confident in engaging with support workers.
For these same reasons, we at Hireup are also hopeful that The Million Dollar Vax will make a difference.
The Australian government has, for some time, toyed with the idea of a lottery incentive. While similar initiatives have seen varying levels of success around the world, Aussies now have the chance to see if this works. If it does, let’s bolster this lottery by backing The Grattan Institute’s initial proposal, which suggested the government front $80 million as an incentive, with $10 million in weekly prizes up for grabs from November.
For now, we need to move the needle on Australia’s vaccination rate. The safety of people with disability - and those in other at risk groups - depends on it. If you’re already vaccinated, great. If you’ve held back, get your first jab before the end of this month. Either way, you can enter The Million Dollar Vax for a chance to be rewarded for doing the right thing.
