Michael Ransom learned that Costco would offer COVID-19 vaccines on February 6 through a post on the Nextdoor website. He immediately went to the warehouse club website to try to apply.
Within 20 minutes, he had scheduled vaccinations for him and his wife at Clackamas Costco near his home. Ransom, 75, received his first vaccine at Costco on Monday. His wife, Carol, will receive hers next week.
“This was a godsend,” Ransom said.
The federal government sent nearly 12,000 doses of vaccine to more than 120 Costco, Health Mart, Safeway and Albertsons pharmacies in 27 of Oregon’s 36 counties last week as part of the initial phase of the Federal Retail Pharmacy Program. Each pharmacy received about 100 doses.
Currently, about 6,500 pharmacies across the country participate in the program, with about 1 million doses a week going to these locations. Although the program is currently limited in scope, the White House believes it can be expanded over time, with doses being sent to some 40,000 pharmacies across the country.
Those who have been able to make appointments at Oregon pharmacies say the program offers a more convenient and direct alternative to mass vaccination sites like the Oregon Convention Center or Portland International Airport.
Cheryl Long’s 80-year-old husband Paul tried to sign up for an appointment through the state’s vaccination scheduling website on February 8, when Oregon residents aged 80 and over became eligible for vaccinations.
Long said her husband spent hours online trying to make an appointment but was unsuccessful. He then called 211, the regional resource service, but was told he would need to call back the next day. Many other seniors reported similar problems on February 8, when all appointments in the Portland area were canceled in just 2.5 hours.
“It was all so disturbing,” wrote Long in an email to The Oregonian / OregonLive.
The state briefly opened additional hours through its scheduling website at the end of last week, but the snowstorm that hit Portland over the weekend caused thousands of appointments to be canceled.
Long’s husband, however, managed to get the vaccine.
She said he arranged to meet at Albertsons in Tigard last Thursday after his daughter asked him personally about availability. He was then able to easily change the appointment date due to bad weather. On Monday, he received his first injection and was able to make an appointment to receive his second dose in March.
“It was like a dream,” wrote Long. “No lines. We were met immediately by a very professional man, who fired the shot. Everything was clean and safe. We parked very close to the front door and had no steps or ramps (to deal with it).”
As of Monday morning, there were still about 1,300 vaccination appointments available at Safeway and Albertsons pharmacies across Oregon, although many locations have already scheduled all of their appointments, according to Jill McGinnis, a spokeswoman for the two supermarket chains. , who share ownership and operate together.
However, McGinnis said the more than 100 Safeway and Albertsons pharmacies across the state currently participating in the federal program will receive another batch of doses later this week. Pharmacies are expected to open new hours on Thursday afternoon, McGinnis said.
Eligible Oregon residents can check appointments through Albertsons and Safeway and apply for available slots by visiting www.albertsons.com/COVID-19 and www.Safeway.com/COVID-19.
Costco also has an online portal for vaccination appointments at costco.com/covid-vaccine.html. There are 13 Costco locations in Oregon currently participating in the federal program.
Health Mart opened its online appointment scheduler on Monday. Currently, eight Health Mart pharmacies across Oregon are participating in the federal program.
These pharmacies expect to receive between 100 and 300 doses per week for now, according to Kristen Breland, a spokesman for the company. Eligible Oregon residents can check available times at Healthmart.com.
Oregon is currently limiting vaccines to healthcare professionals, people living in nursing homes and other care facilities, teachers and – starting this week – people aged 75 and over. People aged 70 and over will be eligible on Monday.
Some pharmacies across the state that are not currently participating in the federal program received doses directly from county allocations, including selected Fred Meyer pharmacies.
Milwaukie residents, Redge Heth, 82, and his wife, Gretchen, 81, spent more than two and a half hours on February 8 trying to sign up for appointments through the state’s scheduling website, but the webpage continued crashing during the application process. Redge finally got a date at the Oregon Convention Center, but Gretchen couldn’t.
This prompted the couple to start researching information about pharmacies in Oregon that administer the vaccine. On February 9, the two signed up for an appointment at Fred Meyer in Oak Grove, with Redge canceling his appointment at the convention center.
After nearly a year of keeping in touch with friends through Zoom and avoiding many outings, in addition to the necessary trips to the supermarket, Gretchen received his first chance last Thursday. Redge received yours a day later.
“What that means is hope,” said Redge.
– Jamie Goldberg | [email protected] | @jamiebgoldberg