Walmart is one of 11 supermarket chains that partner with the federal government to distribute the COVID-19 vaccine, and the retail giant quickly stepped up its efforts to do so.
The retailer announced last week that its pharmacies in six states should administer vaccines by the end of January, according to Reuters. Walmart is already distributing vaccines to eligible groups in four states.
To find out if Walmart in your neighborhood is participating, check out the list below. Until you can visit your store for an injection, here is the vitamin that doctors are asking everyone to take now.
Walmart pharmacies in the Chicago area are included in the new launch. Illinois residents age 65 and older, as well as frontline and essential workers, can obtain one of two FDA vaccines authorized for emergency use by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on January 25. Healthcare professionals are already eligible, according to the local news station NBC 5 Chicago.
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Walmart began offering the Modern vaccine to healthcare professionals and pharmacists in New Mexico in December. Dr. Tom Van Gilder, medical director of the supermarket chain, said the state health department “has carefully chosen storage locations to help ensure that the vaccine is administered safely in rural areas that need help to support distribution of the vaccine to health professionals “.
And other efforts outside the distribution of the vaccine can help to mitigate the spread of COVID19. The retailer is currently testing this entirely new way of delivering groceries.
Walmart has units in every state in the U.S. and Puerto Rico, and is also taking steps to distribute vaccines in its own backyard. Walmart and Sam’s Clubs stores in five cities in Arkansas are distributing vaccines, according to local news station 5News.
The Arkansas governor said the state’s partnership with Walmart will “continue and expand” in a statement to Reuters, as the retailer “agreed to be an important part of our distribution plan”.
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“Walmart has the reach and qualified and trained pharmacists and the pharmacy team to partner with community organizations to provide vaccination services in outsourced places like churches, stadiums and youth centers,” says a post on the network’s website.
In addition to its pharmacies across Georgia, Walmart is about to make the vaccine available to individuals across the state. Beginning January 25, first respondents, healthcare professionals and the elderly can get the vaccine at a Walmart in Chattahoochee Valley in Columbus.
The “Hoosier State” is one of six states recently added to Walmart’s lineup. As the retailer prepares to distribute vaccines in Indiana, the state is approaching 10,000 deaths from COVID-19. For more ways to stay healthy before your vaccination date, here are 10 food buying tips endorsed by experts amid the faster distribution of COVID.
Walmart is currently administering the vaccine in 13 cities in the state of Louisiana, according to the local news station WAFB9 in Baton Rouge.
Across the country, the retailer will help “health deserts” in underserved communities, according to Dr. Cheryl Pegus, executive vice president of Health and Wellness at the chain.
“They are mainly rural locations, where there are very few options for clients to find medical care,” she said. “We have almost 4,000 Walmart locations that are positioned within one or more of the medically underserved areas that are federally designated or where there are limited pharmacy options.
Ten Walmart locations in Maryland are offering a COVID-19 vaccine, according to WJZ CBS Baltimore. The state recently entered Phase 1C, which expands eligibility for adults 65 to 74; public health and safety workers; and US grocery, food production, manufacturing and postal service workers.
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New Jersey is one of seven additional states in which Walmart must offer vaccines. Twelve stores will be ready when doses are available, according to NJ.com.
“So far, we have about 100 stores and Sam’s Clubs in more than half a dozen states administering vaccines to those the state considers eligible, including here in New Jersey,” Alexa Cangialosi, a spokesman for Walmart, told the channel on a communicated.
Nearly 15 Walmart and Sam’s Club locations are helping with vaccinations in South Carolina, according to a local news station WBTW13 in Myrtle Beach. Currently, there are more than 100 locations across the state, along with more than 5,000 across the country. At full capacity, “we expect to be able to deliver 10 to 13 million doses per month when supplies and allocations allow,” said Dr. Pegus in a post on the Walmart website.
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While the second largest state is also poised to begin assisting with the distribution of the vaccine, limited supplies can slow efforts. Many pharmacies have signed up for the efforts, but only a few actually have doses to distribute, according to Reuters. “As soon as there is a broader offer and we can start distributing it regularly to more pharmacies, they will be included,” a Texas State Department of Health Services spokesman told the agency.
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