Scholarships, guns, money ... if you get vaccine shots

Missouri announced a lucrative new vaccination lottery program and West Virginia gave away $1 million, scholarships, guns and vacations as authorities across the nation scramble to reenergize lagging vaccination efforts.

About 60% of adults and 50% of the entire U.S. population are vaccinated, according to statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Coronavirus cases hit a low point June 22 but have since more than tripled, a USA TODAY analysis of Johns Hopkins University data shows. The U.S. had been reporting about eight cases every minute. Now it’s about 28. The nation already has reported about 164,000 more cases in July than in all of June, and cases have been rising in almost every state. From June 22, the pace of new cases is up 762% in Alabama, 666% in South Carolina and 603% in Louisiana.

In West Virginia, a nurse won $1 million and two women won custom-outfitted trucks in the state’s vaccination sweepstakes. Among the other prizes whose winners were revealed Wednesday were two full four-year scholarships, five lifetime hunting licenses, five lifetime fishing licenses, five custom hunting rifles, five custom hunting shotguns and 25 weekend getaways to West Virginia state parks.

In Missouri, the Baptist publication “Word & Way” issued a statement backed by more than 200 Christian leaders urging shots. And residents have the opportunity to win $10,000 prizes under a new lottery program announced by Gov. Mike Parson, a Republican.

China rejects plan to study origin

China rejected the World Health Organization’s plan for a second phase of a study into the origins of COVID-19, dismissing as scientifically unsupported rumor a theory that the virus might have leaked from a lab. A previous joint investigation including WHO and China found it “extremely unlikely” the virus escaped from Wuhan Institute of Virology. WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus last week unveiled a plan to revisit labs and markets in Wuhan. Tedros also called for greater transparency from Beijing.

The U.S. and some allies say China has not been forthcoming about details of the early days of the pandemic.

AHA: Shots for health workers

The nation’s largest hospital association is calling for all healthcare workers to get vaccinated. “To protect all patients, communities and personnel from the known and substantial risks of COVID-19, the American Hospital Association strongly urges the vaccination of all healthcare personnel,” the organization said in a policy statement. “The AHA also supports hospitals and health systems that adopt mandatory COVID-19 vaccination policies for healthcare personnel, with local factors and circumstances shaping whether and how these policies are implemented.”