CVS Expands the COVID-19 Vaccine to 12 More States, Including Colorado, Illinois, Minnesota and Nevada

CVS Expands the COVID-19 Vaccine to 12 More States, Including Colorado, Illinois, Minnesota and Nevada

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The COVID-19 vaccine is being launched in CVS stores in more than a dozen states.

The day after Target announced that CVS pharmacies in more than 600 of its stores were administering vaccines, the drugstore chain said it continues to increase the number of pharmacies offering vaccines and expand access to other states.

CVS said that appointments in the “newly activated states” will begin to become available for reservation on Saturday, March 13.

The new states are: Colorado, Illinois, Kentucky, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, North Carolina, North Dakota, Nevada, Oklahoma, Utah and Vermont. After expanding previously to New York and Pennsylvania, CVS said it will also administer vaccines in New York City and Philadelphia.

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CVS Health President and CEO Karen Lynch said in a statement on Thursday that the company is “increasing the number of active stores and expanding into other states as fast as supply allows”. She said the company said it had the capacity to administer 20 million to 25 million injections per month.

Vaccines are currently available only at selected locations and for eligible populations, which vary by state.

CVS, Walgreens, Walmart, Kroger and other large retailers with pharmacies began administering their first doses of COVID-19 vaccine in February as part of the Federal Pharmacy Program for Vaccines COVID-19. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are running the program.

According to the USA TODAY vaccine tracker, which is updated frequently, as of Wednesday, about 18.8% of people in the United States received at least one injection of COVID-19 and about 9.9% of people received both doses of the vaccine. About 25.1% of the doses distributed have not yet been used.

COVID vaccine for teachers

On March 2, President Joe Biden urged states to prioritize educators, school staff and child care workers for grades K through 12 to receive at least one vaccine by the end of March. The president has no authority to direct states about vaccine distribution, but said the government would use its federal partnership with local pharmacies to prioritize school staff.

“I want to be very clear, not every educator will get your appointment in the first week, but our goal is to do everything we can to help each educator get an injection this month,” he said. “We are making progress with the mess we inherited. We are going in the right direction.”

CVS said on Thursday that from March 3 to 10, educators “were responsible for more than 30 percent of the appointments for COVID-19 vaccines at CVS pharmacies”.

Lynch said the company is focused “on priority populations, including vulnerable communities disproportionately impacted by the pandemic, as well as teachers and school support staff.”

CVS COVID-19 vaccine appointments

CVS, which has about 10,000 locations, including pharmacies within Target stores, said that as vaccine supplies become available through the federal program, it will expand to other states, increasing the number of stores offering vaccines .

CVS is requiring appointment for the vaccine, which can be done on CVS.com or through the CVS Pharmacy app. Anyone without Internet access can call 800-746-7287.

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CVS States is offering COVID vaccines

On March 10, CVS states that it is now administering vaccines in about 1,200 stores in 29 states and Puerto Rico.

The states are:

  • Alabama

  • Arizona

  • California

  • Colorado

  • Connecticut

  • Florida

  • Hawaii

  • Illinois

  • Kentucky

  • Louisiana

  • Maryland

  • Massachusetts

  • Minnesota

  • Missouri

  • Montana

  • North Caroline

  • North Dakota

  • Nevada

  • New Jersey

  • New York

  • Ohio

  • Oklahoma

  • Pennsylvania

  • Puerto Rico

  • Rhode Island

  • South Carolina

  • Texas

  • Utah

  • Vermont

  • Virginia

Contributing: Nathan Bomey, Janie Haseman and Courtney Subramanian, USA TODAY

Follow USA TODAY reporter Kelly Tyko on Twitter: @KellyTyko

This article was originally published in USA TODAY: COVID vaccine nominations: CVS adds vaccination to more states

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