Walgreens already completed more than 1 million COVID-19 vaccinations. According to the media announcement Walgreens has administered more than 1 million COVID-19 vaccinations across long-term care facilities and other vulnerable populations identified as part of state and jurisdiction distribution plans.
The company also remains on track to complete the administration of COVID-19 vaccine first doses in skilled nursing facilities by Monday, January 25.
“Since receiving our first allotments of vaccines in late December, Walgreens has remained on track in vaccinating our most vulnerable populations, and we are steadfast in our commitment to accelerating access to COVID-19 vaccines as we receive additional guidance from state governments and jurisdictions,” said John Standley, president, Walgreens.
“Walgreens takes immense pride in being a part of protecting our communities from COVID-19 and helping the country take this first step toward emerging from this pandemic.”
U.S. COVID-19 Vaccination Program
Now that there are authorized and recommended vaccines to prevent COVID-19 in the United States, here are 8 things from Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) you need to know about the new COVID-19 Vaccination Program and COVID-19 vaccines.
- CDC has developed a new tool, v-safe, as an additional layer of safety monitoring to increase our ability to rapidly detect any safety issues with COVID-19 vaccines. V-safe is a new smartphone-based, after-vaccination health checker for people who receive COVID-19 vaccines. V-safe is a smartphone-based tool that uses text messaging and web surveys to provide personalized health check-ins after you receive a COVID-19 vaccine. Through v-safe, you can quickly tell CDC if you have any side effects after getting the COVID-19 vaccine. Depending on your answers, someone from CDC may call to check on you and get more information.
- Depending on the specific vaccine you get, a second shot 3-4 weeks after your first shot is needed to get the most protection the vaccine has to offer against this serious disease.
- To help guide decisions about how to distribute limited initial supplies of COVID-19 vaccine, CDC and the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices have published recommendations for which groups should be vaccinated first.
- The goal is for everyone to be able to easily get vaccinated against COVID-19 as soon as large enough quantities are available.
- The side effects from COVID-19 vaccination may feel like flu and might even affect your ability to do daily activities, but they should go away in a few days.
- Vaccine doses purchased with U.S. taxpayer dollars will be given to the American people at no cost.
- The first COVID-19 vaccines are being used under Emergency Use Authorizations (EUA) from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Many other vaccines are still being developed and tested.
- It’s important for everyone to continue using all the tools available to help stop this pandemic as we learn more about how COVID-19 vaccines work in real-world conditions.
COVID-19 Vaccinations From Walgreens
Walgreens began administering COVID-19 vaccinations as part of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Pharmacy Partnership for Long-Term Care Program on December 21, and has continued to expand vaccine efforts according to state and jurisdiction distribution plans.
“Thanks to the dedication of tens of thousands of Walgreens pharmacy team members, we have been able to provide 1 million COVID-19 vaccinations to those who need them most in just one month,” said John Standley, president, Walgreens. “This unprecedented effort has not been without challenges, but as federal, state and local jurisdictions continue to advance their prioritization and distribution plans, we have been able to rapidly expand vaccine access to our nation’s most vulnerable populations and help our communities begin to emerge from this pandemic.”
Walgreens is also providing COVID-19 vaccinations to additional vulnerable populations as determined by states and jurisdictions. The initial supply of vaccine is extremely limited and available to eligible individuals by appointment only at designated Walgreens stores.
