JACKSONVILLE BEACH, Fla. — Nearly a quarter of Americans are fully vaccinated and more than a third have at least their first dose. We are inching back to normal but pharmacies like Walgreens are still working to get a shot to the millions who still need one.
This week, vaccine supply is expected to double for Walgreens across America according to their Chief Medical Officer Dr. Kevin Ban.
“About a week ago we were receiving a million doses per week from the federal government and next week we expect to have as much as 2.2 million," Ban said. "So there is much more vaccine availability now and our intention is to lean into our footprint so that we can get Americans vaccinated.”
There are more than 9,000 Walgreens stores across America and Dr. Ban says the goal is to offer vaccines at every pharmacy. In Jacksonville, Ban says he’s hoping to expand across the 22 stores in the city with a focus on underserved neighborhoods.
For the people who haven’t come to the pharmacy to get vaccinated, Dr. Ban says they’re sending people out into the community.
“We are doing everything we can do identify barriers and then remove them," Ban said.
That includes creating clinics outside the store, staff calling people to schedule vaccine appointments, and ramping up their partnership with Uber to give people free rides to the pharmacy for their vaccine.
“We went ahead and put vaccination sites in communities and found that is not enough," Ban said. "We’ve got to go beyond that. We have pharmacists that call people who live in the community. We have off site clinics at civic centers and churches. We are even trying to remove other barriers like transportation.”
Walgreens' partnership with Uber promises to deliver 10 million rides to vaccination appointments. This week, Reuters reports that PayPal joined the partnership to start a fund where people can also donate to the cause.
The three companies started an 11 million dollar vaccine ride fund.
Another hurdle to get to herd immunity is vaccine hesitancy. Ban says it is as simple as heading to a store and talking to their pharmacists. They’re prepared to talk to you about the science behind the vaccine.
To book a vaccine appointment at Walgreens, click here.