Walgreens expects to receive its first allocation of COVID-19 vaccine Dec. 21 and will immediately start vaccinating staff and residents of long-term care facilities, CNBC reported.
The retail pharmacy giant said it is working with FedEx to receive vaccine shipments and it has designated some of its drugstores as hubs that will keep doses in special freezers and keep dry ice on hand to meet the ultracold storage requirements for Pfizer's vaccine.
Walgreens said it will open on-site clinics at long-term care facilities that will be staffed by two to 15 people, depending on the facility's size, CNBC reported. About 30,000 facilities have chosen Walgreens to give the vaccines.
The company has more than 27,000 pharmacists trained to give vaccines and is working to hire 8,000 to 9,000 pharmacy staff to help the vaccination effort. Walgreens plans to make two to three trips per nursing home to vaccinate everyone, according to CNBC.
Rick Gates, Walgreens' senior vice president of pharmacy and healthcare, told CNBC that the vaccination effort in long-term care facilities will help educate the public about the vaccines.
He said he's not sure when Walgreens will have vaccine doses in its stores for the general public.