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| There's a new incentive program aiming to increase COVID-19 vaccinations in the U.S. |
| CVS Health announced Thursday that it will allow people who have gotten or will get vaccinated at its stores to enter a sweepstakes giveaway for a variety of prizes, including a trip to the Super Bowl, $5,000 to fund a family reunion, cruises or cash. |
| Meanwhile, in Ohio, about 2.75 million people entered and two people won the state's first Vax-a-Million drawing Wednesday. One won the $1 million prize and the other a full-ride college scholarship. |
| New York is trying something similar. Vaccinated kids aged 12 to 17 will have a chance to win a full ride to public universities and colleges in the state. Gov. Andrew Cuomo said the state will raffle off 50 scholarships, which would cover four years of tuition, room and board, books and supplies. |
| It's Thursday, and this is the Coronavirus Watch from the USA TODAY Network. Here's more news you need to know: |
| • | Where did COVID-19 come from? President Joe Biden said Wednesday he has asked the intelligence community to report within 90 days on the likely origins of the novel coronavirus. | | • | Ten states, mostly in the Northeast, have now reached Biden's goal to vaccinate at least 70% of adults with at least one dose by July 4, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says. Multiple studies are indicating that immunity may persist for months – or even years. | | • | About 43% of Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders ages 18 to 44 are hesitant to get vaccinated, a survey by the Pacific Islander Center of Primary Care Excellence and the American Association of Psychologists found. | | • | U.S. health officials have granted emergency authorization to a third antibody drug to help reduce hospitalizations and deaths because of COVID-19. | |
| Today's numbers: The U.S. has reported more than 33 million COVID-19 cases and 592,000 deaths, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. Worldwide, there have been more than 168 million cases and more than 3.5 million deaths. Nearly 50% of people in the U.S. have received at least one vaccine shot, and nearly 40% are fully vaccinated, according to the CDC. |
| Tracking the pandemic: See the numbers in your area here. See where cases are rising here. See vaccination rates here. And here, compare vaccinations rates worldwide and see which countries are using which vaccines. |
| – Grace Hauck, USA TODAY breaking news reporter, @grace_hauck |
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