In all my years of covering the lottery business I’ve never seen a scratch game dedicated solely to funding the research aimed at fighting a disease.

Well, now I’ve seen everything. And it’s awesome! [Why don’t more lotteries do this, considering the funding problems so many researchers have these days?]

In September, Illinois announced the release of a new instant ticket that will fund research aimed at developing preventative measures and treatment of MS.

It’s Double Time! is the first instant ticket in U.S. Lottery history where 100 percent of net proceeds will be used to help people in Illinois living with MS.

We anticipate great success with this ticket and are hopeful that it will attract new players who want to combine fun with the chance to support an important cause at the same time, added the state’s acting Lottery Superintendent.

Multiple sclerosis is an unpredictable neurological disease that interrupts the flow of information between the brain and the rest of the body and stops people from moving. There are at least 400,000 Americans with MS, and every week about 200 new people are diagnosed with the disease “ more than one person an hour.

Treatment for multiple sclerosis is expensive and often means a significant portion of a family’s income is consumed by care giving, hospital and physician costs, medication, long-term care, assistive devices and equipment. The average cost for someone living with MS is $69,118 per year.

The Illinois General Assembly will appropriate proceeds from It’s Double Time! tickets to the Department of Public Health and the National MS Society, which will award grants to organizations conducting MS research in Illinois.

All grants funded by the ticket’s revenue will be reviewed and approved by the National MS Society’s Research Programs Advisory Committee, a panel that includes some 75 leading scientists, physicians and other professionals from virtually every field related to MS.

In the Money:

Tuesday night’s Mega Millions Jackpot is worth $43 million.

Wednesday’s Powerball jackpot is also worth $42 million.

Good luck.