Covid-19 vaccines in grocery stores and pharmacies with stress tests

Not all Americans are eligible for vaccines, and vaccines remain insufficient. But vaccines are becoming more available in some states, and the Federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention aims to make them available in local pharmacies starting next month. There are no costs for receiving the vaccine.

(See the WSJ State-by-State Guide.)

The task of vaccinating large areas of the population will go largely to retail pharmacies, with companies such as CVS Health Body.

CVS -0.27%

, Walgreens WBA -2.83%

-Boots Alliance Inc., Walmart Inc.

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and Kroger Co.

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saying they are ready to take tens of millions of photos a month.

“We will have to look at ways to increase our access points. We need to be able to speed up the vaccination rate of people across the country if we want to make a difference, ”said Bart Buxton, co-chair of the Covid-19 vaccine working group for McLaren Health Care Corp. Flint, Mich. The hospital system teamed up with Walgreens to deliver doses to 26,000 of its employees as part of the first phase of vaccinations.

Hospitals and health systems, already overwhelmed by the treatment of coronavirus patients, cannot bear the weight of vaccinations, Mr Buxton said. “Health systems like McLaren can’t do this on their own.”

Pharmacies are well positioned to play a major role in Covid-19 vaccination efforts, industry executives say, as they are among the most affordable health care providers for many Americans, including people 65 and older. they often take medication from local supermarkets or pharmacies. These companies say they can also draw on their experience in providing vaccines for the flu, shingles and other diseases.

CVS and Walgreens combined have 19,000 US stores, while Walmart, Rite RAD -10.46%

Aid Corp., Kroger and Publix Super Markets Inc., have another 11,000 locations. Add to this dozens of regional groceries with pharmacy counters.

CVS says it can vaccinate between 20 and 25 million people a month once supplies are available. Walmart said in January it would be able to vaccinate between 10 and 13 million a month.

President Biden said last Monday that his goal of administering 100 million Covid-19 vaccines in his first 100 days in office could reach 150 million. As of Friday, 27.9 million photos had been taken, out of 49.2 million distributed since mid-December, according to CDC data.

Pharmacy chains and pharmacy retailers say they have the manpower and physical space to cope with mass vaccinations, and in some areas have already stepped in to help local and state officials. The big chains say they have online programming tools that can handle an influx of meetings.

Walgreens said it plans to hire about 25,000 people in the United States to administer the vaccine. It has 75,000 pharmacists and technicians. CVS, which employs 34,000 pharmacists and 65,000 technicians, declined to say how many workers it employs.

Among the biggest challenges now for retailers is relationships with customers eager to know when it’s their turn.

“We are doing everything we can to avoid confusion about how to vaccinate,” said a CVS spokesman. In addition to long-term care facilities, the pharmacy chain offers photos to select groups in Indiana, Massachusetts, New York and Puerto Rico. People eligible for a vaccine must make an appointment.

“We answer this question dozens, hundreds of times a day,” said Charlie Hartig, executive director of Hartig Drug Stores, a small chain in the Midwest, about the issue of vaccine availability. “Education takes time.”

The Associated Food Stores, a cooperative of more than 400 supermarkets and nearly 40 pharmacies, works through the way its staff will report vaccinations and process applications quickly.

For Associated Food, scheduling has been an area of ​​interest, said Chris Sheard, who oversees the company’s pharmacy operations. Its pharmacies have operated largely on an access basis and now require customers to set up appointments for Covid-19 vaccines so that they can be spaced out and cleaned.

“People were going up for lunch. We can’t do that now, “Mr. Sheard said. The company is trying to get the word out by stepping up marketing and social media efforts and providing waiting lists where people can sign up.

Others are looking for space to do vaccinations and work with organizations to organize mass vaccination events. Hy-Vee Food Inc. in Iowa is working with a local university to set up vaccination stations on a 16,000-square-foot unit, said Aaron Wiese, the company’s chief health officer.

“You look at a significantly higher number when you say 65 and over and people with basic conditions,” Mr Wiese said. “Add other essential workers, you will need more capacity.”

Hy-Vee intends to use greenhouses, which are temperature controlled and suitable for larger groups. The retailer has also started testing the so-called waiting pods, where customers can wait after vaccination and RVs with examination rooms. Hy-Vee plans to deploy rolling stock when it goes to factories to immunize staff there, Mr Wiese said.

Mass vaccinations will require a robust online booking system, said America Davis, communications coordinator for Immunize Nevada, a nonprofit organization that has created a website to schedule meetings in the state. He struggled to keep the site running amid a crushing demand.

“Health and local officials are literally working non-stop to make sure we’re doing this right,” she said. “I don’t think anyone has predicted exactly what this vaccine will be absorbed.”

Write to Sharon Terlep at [email protected] and Jaewon Kang at [email protected]