4^th of July – Independence Day – is rapidly approaching. A day dedicated to celebrating our precious freedoms, and after a long, difficult year such as we’ve all had, it’ll be a day to celebrate freedom and it’ll be most welcome.

Hello, this is Governor Janet Mills and thank you for listening.

As you may know, President Biden called on all states to have delivered at least one shot of the vaccine to 70 percent of all adults by this July 4^th to celebrate our victory over this formidable enemy just as the founders of our nation celebrated our country’s victory in the battle for Independence.

Well in typical Maine fashion, we met President Biden’s goal 53 days ahead of schedule.

Today, more than 74 percent of Maine people 12 and up have received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine. And we are closing in on having 70 percent of all Maine adults fully vaccinated.

We rank third best among the states in the percentage of all eligible residents fully vaccinated.

Maine people are resilient, but we also rely on each other. Our nation-leading progress in beating back the pandemic and getting our state back to normal is truly due to the more than 876,000 Maine people who have already rolled up their sleeves to be vaccinated.

We should all celebrate this milestone, but hey let’s not stop there – let's keep going.

We know the best way to protect yourself, your loved ones, and your community is to get vaccinated.

And unfortunately, there are dozens of people still getting very sick and who are in the hospital today, in ICU even, people who were not vaccinated against the deadly virus.

To encourage even more people to get their vaccine, I’ve announced this week the “Don’t Miss Your Shot: Vaccinationland Sweepstakes.”

Using federal funding, no state dollars, one vaccinated person will win $1 for every person vaccinated in Maine by the Fourth of July.

If the drawing were held today as I am recording this, the prize would total $876,655. A pretty good piece of change. But, for every person vaccinated between now and 6:00 a.m. on July 4, 2021, we will add another dollar to the prize. The more people vaccinated — even with one shot — the bigger the prize.

All residents of Maine age 12 and up who have received at least one dose of Moderna or Pfizer or the one-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine since December 15^th of last year, can enter for a chance to win the prize. 

Registration is required and the deadline to get vaccinated and register is 11:59 p.m. on June 30, 2021 – about two weeks from now, or a little less. You do not have to be fully vaccinated by June 30^th to qualify, but you do have to have gotten at least one dose. 

To find a vaccination site near you, go online, visit the State’s vaccination website at maine.gov/covid19/vaccines or call the Community Vaccination Line at 1-888-445-4111.

We’ll even get you a ride to the vaccination site if you need one.

Registrations for the Sweepstakes are accepted now. You can go online again at maine.gov/covid19/vaccines for more information or again call the Community Vaccination Line at 1-888-445-4111. 

We will randomly select a winner on July 4th.

Don’t miss your shot. By getting vaccinated you could win nearly a million dollars and, with every person that gets vaccinated, a dollar more is added to the pot.

Maine people look out for each other every day, without fanfare, without fuss, and that has been especially true these last fifteen plus months.

Despite risks to yourselves, despite the adversity of our time, and through courage, compassion and perseverance, you have all helped our state survive this pandemic.

You deserve a reward for rolling up your sleeve and for proving that Maine people will always have each other’s backs. Don’t miss your shot.                                                                                                                                                                          

This is Governor Janet Mills. Thank you for listening.

Classroom learning is critical for the social and mental and academic development of our kids. With the progress we’ve made in vaccinating people, there should be no barriers to getting our kids back into the classroom full-time this fall.

Hello, this is Governor Janet Mills and thank you for listening.

Maine consistently ranks among the best states in the nation for COVID-19 vaccinations, with over 70 percent of our entire population having received at least one dose. We are making meaningful progress protecting Maine people, including those age 12 to 15 who just became eligible last month for vaccinations.

As of June 9, almost 40 percent of Maine youth of that age have received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine and 19 percent have received final doses.

With the progress we have made in vaccinating Maine youth and containing the spread of COVID-19, we have been gradually relaxing the physical distancing requirements in schools that participate in our pooled testing programs.

Earlier this week, we announced that remaining physical distancing requirements in all schools will be relaxed next school year.

As a result, we expect every school to offer full-time, in-person learning in the fall. We also strongly encourage schools to participate in our pooled testing program to further reduce the risk of COVID-19 for students who are not yet eligible for vaccinations and to limit educational disruption due to quarantining if a student is identified as a close contact. Pooled testing allows schools to easily test many staff and students all at once and to respond quickly to any positive cases and limit the spread of the virus.

Since the fall of 2020, nearly all Maine preK-12 schools have been providing in-person instruction to students.

School administrators and teachers have worked hard all year to protect their students from the virus and to provide them with a good education and to meet so many of their other needs. By following public health and safety protocols, school staff have successfully kept the rate of COVID-19 transmission in schools lower — much lower — than the state average.

I am deeply grateful for their herculean efforts, but like most Maine people, I also worry about the children who have been left behind academically and emotionally in these last fifteen months of remote or hybrid learning. Trying to learn online with no internet or slow internet, or with a disability, or with English as your second language, or with just no one to help you at home — that’s all unbelievably hard. And parents across the state have struggled to juggle homeschooling and jobs. 

Getting our kids back into the classroom is critical to their recovery, and to ours.

This fall, with more students and school staff vaccinated and with the spread of COVID-19 slowed, every school in Maine will resume in-person, full time classroom instruction. 

This is Governor Janet Mills. Thank you for listening.