PHILADELPHIA—The families of several vaccinated Philadelphians are celebrating this week, and not just because they are safe from COVID. They were chosen to win up to $50,000 from the Philly Vax Sweepstakes last week. Half of the winners; one $50,000, two $5,000, and three $1,000 winners; are being chosen from the selected zip code of 19133, which is one of the lower vaccinated zip codes in Philadelphia. The rest were chosen from elsewhere in Philadelphia. None of the $50,000 winners from this round of the sweepstakes wanted to be publicly named.
“We are absolutely thrilled to see the level of excitement this unique sweepstakes has generated both locally and nationally, and it has been a joy to hear the stories of our winners,” said Dr. Katy Milkman, Wharton Professor and Co-Director of the Behavior Change for Good Initiative at the University of Pennsylvania. “I was proud to highlight the Philly Vax Sweepstakes when I testified in Congress in early July about how behavioral science can help address the urgent need to overcome vaccine hesitancy. Our team is delighted that we’ve been able to offer a chance at these rewards to all vaccinated Philadelphians while concentrating resources on particularly under-vaccinated communities. We’re thrilled that Elmwood’s 19142 will be the focus of next Monday’s drawing, meaning that half the winners will come from the Elmwood community. Vax up to win, Philly!”
One of the unidentified $50,000 winners authorized the release of the following statement.
“Disbelief, excitement and elation are all emotions I feel after winning the Philly Vax Sweepstakes. I also want to acknowledge the challenges that Philadelphians faced this year– seeing businesses suffer, lives lost, and families try to put back the pieces together after a devastating year emotionally and financially. I would give this all back if it meant we could have prevented the pandemic. Winning is a huge gift for me and I plan on paying off almost all of my student loans, giving back to the community, and using the money to reunite with my family after almost two years and take them all out to celebrate.
If you haven’t gotten vaccinated, please go get your free Covid-19 vaccine and help end the pandemic. I got it so I could feel safe around people and resume a more normal life, and winning the vaccine sweepstakes is just the cherry on top of feeling protected from the virus!”
The unidentified winner from the selected zip code of 19133 is a 33-year-old woman who lives with her four children in North Philadelphia. She works as a home health aide and plans to use the prize to buy a home. She said, “Everyone was getting sick, so I knew I wanted to get the vaccine. I had to do my research first but found out there’s nothing wrong with it. I encourage everyone else to go out and get the vaccine.”
The third and final round of the Philly Vax Sweepstakes is currently running, and winners will be chosen on July 19. Half of the winners in this final round will be chosen from the selected zip code: 19142. The other half will come from the rest of the city. Winners need to be 18 or older, Philadelphia residents, and have received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine from anywhere by July 18.
Winners are drawn from a sweepstakes database with the contact information of more than 1,000,000 Philadelphians. Residents are encouraged to register themselves at https://www.phillyvaxsweeps.com to make sure that they can be picked. More than 74,000 Philadelphians have already made sure that they are in the database and are ready to win. It’s important to register your contact information – and answer the call!
Thus far, 24 Philadelphians have won or are being awarded part of $252,000 just for being vaccinated against COVID. Both the first and second rounds of the Philly Vax Sweepstakes have had $5,000 winners who missed out on claiming their prize because they were not vaccinated.
“Given the rising case counts in other parts of the United States because of the Delta variant, now is the absolute best time to get vaccinated,” said Acting Health Commissioner Dr. Cheryl Bettigole. “Research has shown that being fully vaccinated is highly protective against the Delta variant and is the best way to ensure that you and your loved ones can be safe from COVID this summer. And it means you have a chance to win $50,000, but only if you get your first shot by July 18!”
Philadelphia vaccine providers have administered more than 1,750,000 vaccine doses since December. More than 907,000 Philadelphians, which is 73% of all adults, have received at least one dose of vaccine, and nearly 60% of adults are fully vaccinated.
For more information on the City’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic, visit https://www.phila.gov/covid. To learn where you can be vaccinated throughout the city, visit https://www.phila.gov/vaccine. To make sure that you are registered for the third and final round of the Philly Vax Sweepstakes, visit https://www.phillyvaxsweeps.com.