SACRAMENTO, California — The push to immunize more Americans against the coronavirus now includes several major retail pharmacy chains.
CVS, Rite Aid, Walgreens and Walmart are among the major pharmacy and drugstore chains that will start giving COVID-19 vaccines received from the federal government on Friday, Feb. 12.
The free vaccinations are part of the Federal Retail Pharmacy Program, a state and federal partnership that targets getting immunizations in underserved areas.
However, many pharmacies may not have vaccines or only received a limited supply at first.
The initial rollout this week includes some 6,500 pharmacies around the country. The plan is to eventually expand the program to 40,000 pharmacies.
How to book COVID-19 vaccine appointment at CVS
Starting Feb. 12, a limited number of CVS Pharmacy locations will be offering vaccinations in these 11 states:
- California
- Connecticut
- Hawaii
- Maryland
- Massachusetts
- New Jersey
- New York
- Rhode Island
- South Carolina
- Texas
- Virginia
Only about 333 out of 10,000 CVS locations nationwide will be offering vaccinations in-store to start. Vaccines at CVS stores will be offered on an appointment-only basis via CVS.com or through the CVS Pharmacy app. Those without online access can contact customer service: (800) 746-7287.
CVS has asked customers not to contact individual locations to setup an appointment.
How to book COVID-19 vaccine appointment at Rite Aid
Rite Aid will begin scheduling appointments with vaccinations starting Feb. 12. The pharmacy said it expects to initially receive 100 doses per participating store, per week nationwide.
People who are eligible to receive vaccines will be able to make an appointment on the Rite Aid website. However, as of Feb. 12, Rite Aid said on its website it would not be able to schedule appointments due to the limited supply of vaccines.
"Rite Aid is helping to administer vaccines in some areas, but is not currently able to schedule appointments directly," Rite Aid said.
As a Federal Retail Pharmacy Partner, Rite Aid will receive vaccine allocation from the federal government in five states and two jurisdictions:
- California
- Michigan
- New Jersey
- Ohio
- Pennsylvania
- Philadelphia
- New York City
Vaccines will be provided in over half of the locations in those areas. As supply becomes more available, Rite Aid said it will increase the number of stores offering vaccines.
How to book COVID-19 vaccine appointment at Walmart and Sam's Club
Starting Feb. 12, more than 1,000 Walmart and Sam's Club pharmacies in 22 states will start administering COVID-19 vaccinations as part of the federal vaccine allocations.
Eligible participants can schedule an appointment to get a vaccine on the Walmart and Sam's Club websites. A Sam's Club membership is not required to obtain a vaccination.
These are the 22 states where Walmart and Sam's Club will be administering vaccines from the federal government:
Before trying to schedule an appointment, you're asked to verify your eligibility through your state health department's website.
In addition to the 22 states administering federal allocations, Walmart and Sam’s Club is also administering vaccinations under state allocations in 11 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico.
How to book COVID-19 vaccine appointment at Walgreens
Starting Feb. 12, Walgreens will be offering a limited number of vaccinations across 15 states and jurisdictions as part of the federal program. Eligible individuals will be based on state and jurisdiction guidelines, and may include healthcare workers, people 65 and older, and individuals with pre-existing conditions.
Appointments for COVID-19 vaccinations can be made through the appointment scheduler at Walgreens.com/ScheduleVaccine, when vaccines becomes available. As of Feb. 2, the company said it would not be providing vaccinations on a walk-in basis.
The states and jurisdictions where Walgreens is a federal partner are:
- Chicago
- Connecticut
- Delaware
- Illinois
- Kentucky
- Maryland
- New Hampshire
- New Mexico
- New York
- New York City
- North Carolina
- Puerto Rico
- Vermont
- Wisconsin
- West Virginia
As part of the Federal Retail Pharmacy Program, 49,140 COVID-19 vaccinations will be delivered to Walgreens Pharmacies in California.
Vaccinations will begin in stores on Wednesday, Feb. 24, for eligible individuals.
