Some hospitals and nursing homes in rural areas still do not have access to the coronavirus vaccine. Grady Trimble from FOX Business with more.
The supermarket chain Lidl, based in Arlington, Virginia, became the latest retailer to offer incentives for the vaccination COVID-19, announcing that it will give $ 200 more to any American employee who is inoculated.
ALDI WORKERS WHO OBTAIN THE COVID-19 VACCINE WILL RECEIVE EXTRA PAYMENT, THE COMPANY SAYS
The additional payment will be used to offset the costs incurred by employees associated with vaccine administration, including travel and daycare expenses. In addition, Lidl will accommodate employee schedules for vaccine appointments.
A Lidl spokesman told FOX Business that his commitment “exceeds the incentives offered by other retailers recently”.
The announcement came after Aldi’s, Trader Joe’s and Dollar General said they would cover the costs of administering the vaccine to their employees with up to four hours of payment for the two doses they receive. In the meantime, Instacart will offer all eligible employees, including shift leaders, in-store buyers and full-service customers, a $ 25 vaccine support stipend beginning February 1.
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In March, Lidl developed the industry’s first program with CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield to give all its employees free access to comprehensive COVID-19 medical coverage.
“We are proud to provide our employees with the resources they need to receive the COVID-19 vaccine free from any obstacles,” said Lidl US CEO Johannes Fieber in a press release on Wednesday. “Since the beginning of the pandemic, we have worked hard to put the health and safety of our employees first. From offering free COVID-19 medical assistance to our entire workforce to installing hospital-grade air filtration. in our stores and warehouses to ensure cleaner and healthier air, Lidl has prioritized adapting our policies to work better for our people during this pandemic. We are proud to do it again today to ensure that every team member you want being vaccinated can do it as soon as possible. “
According to an internal survey, almost 8 out of 10 Lidl employees plan to receive the vaccine as soon as it becomes available. Lidl operates about 11,200 stores and is present in 32 countries, with a global workforce of more than 310,000 employees.
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An Advisory Committee of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommended that civil servants in supermarkets be part of the next round, Phase 1b, of vaccines, alongside frontline officials such as police, fire, US Postal workers and agents penitentiaries, teachers and agricultural workers.
The United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that more than 35 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine have been distributed and more than 16.5 million have been administered by Wednesday. According to the latest update from Johns Hopkins University, the United States has exceeded 24.4 million confirmed cases of coronavirus and more than 405,000 related deaths since the start of the pandemic.
Jeanette Settembre of Fox Business and the Associated Press contributed to this report