New details released on how Manitoba lottery to encourage COVID-19 vaccinations will work

Manitoba Liquor & Lotteries has released new details about how the province's lottery to encourage more people to get a COVID-19 vaccine will work. 

The first draw, for Manitobans who have at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, will happen two or three days after the Aug. 2 deadline. The winner will be contacted within five days of the draw. 

The second will happen on Sept. 6. To be eligible for that draw, you will need to have two doses of a COVID-19 vaccine. 

The draws will be based on people's health numbers, which will be encrypted so that they can't be attributed to an individual, Manitoba Liquor & Lotteries president and CEO Manny Atwal said during a technical briefing Tuesday. 

After Manitoba Liquor & Lotteries draws the randomized numbers, they will be provided to Manitoba Health, which will confirm the correlating name and contact info. 

Manitobans do not have to do anything to be entered into the lottery other than get vaccinated, Atwal said. 

However, winners will need to identify themselves and have their identity acknowledged publicly in order to accept the prize, a standard condition for lotteries run by Manitoba Liquor & Lotteries, Atwal said. 

"That's part of the conditions of winning the lottery, and that's part of how things have moved forward within the province since we have had lotteries in place here," he said. 

That's a sticking point for Adrien Sala, the Opposition NDP's critic for Liquor & Lotteries.

He said in a statement that Manitobans should not have to waive their right to privacy to qualify for a government program. 

"This is of particular concern for minors who might risk undue social or familial criticism if this information is made public," he said, adding the Progressive Conservative government should "put the privacy and protection of Manitobans ahead of their own agenda."

Anyone who doesn't want to be entered in the draw can opt out by contacting Manitoba Health or by filling out an online form. 

For each of the draws, there will be three $100,000 prizes for the Winnipeg health region and one $100,000 prize in each of the other four health regions. 

There will also be 10 prizes of $25,000 scholarships for youth age 12 to 17.

The scholarships can be used to attend any post-secondary institution in the world. If the winner doesn't plan to go to university or college right away, the money will be put into a trust that they can access to pay for post-secondary education until they are 20, Atwal said.

After that, the money will be considered forfeited, he said.