The board approved about $375,000 to support the lottery out of $94 million provided to the county through the American Rescue Plan Act. The program will award 10 $1,000 prizes weekly until Aug. 20. Biweekly, the drawing will award five $50,000 cash prizes and five $5,000 scholarships through the same period.

About 61% of the county’s eligible residents age 18 and older are vaccinated, and the county is seeking incentives to target the population age 40 and under, said Polk County Supervisor Angela Connolly. Any county resident who has received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine is eligible to register.

“We still need about 62,000 more folks to reach our 75% herd immunity, which allows us to protect all our residents in communities who are immunocompromised or unable to be vaccinated,” Connolly said. “This is something we looked into several weeks ago, particularly after we’ve seen other states showing great strides in getting those vaccine numbers rising. It seems to be working, so we’re hoping for the best.”

The county is establishing vaccination clinics with Prairie Meadows and other nonprofits, Connolly said.

Randomized computer drawings managed by an outside auditing firm will select the names of participants who register through www.immunizepolk.org, and county Health Department staff will verify full vaccination status using the state vaccination database. Paper registration forms are available at Polk County senior centers, and residents can receive assistance registering through the COVID-19 call center at 515-323-5221.

Vaccinated youths ages 12-18 are eligible to register for the scholarship lottery, and will receive scholarship funding at age 18 with proof of completed vaccination, Polk County Board of Supervisors community relations specialist Jon Cahill said.