CVS to start COVID-19 vaccinations at long-term care facilities in PA next week

Starting Dec. 28, CVS Health will begin to administer COVID-19 vaccinations to residents and staff in 2,283 skilled nursing and assisted living facilities in Pennsylvania.

The company began distributing the Pfizer vaccine Monday in 12 states including Connecticut, Florida, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Nevada, New Hampshire, New York, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, and Vermont. Vaccinations will then begin in Pennsylvania and 35 more states, as well as the District of Columbia, on Dec. 28. Puerto Rico will activate on Jan. 4, according to a press release.

The company expects to vaccinate up to four million residents and staff at over 40,000 long-term care facilities through the program, the release states.

“Today’s rollout is the culmination of months of internal planning and demonstrates how the private sector can use its expertise to help solve some of our most critical challenges,” said Larry J. Merlo, President and Chief Executive Officer, CVS Health. “I’m grateful for the herculean efforts of everyone involved, including our health care professionals who will be deployed throughout the country to bring peace of mind to long-term care facility residents, staff, and their loved ones.”

CVS Pharmacy teams will make three visits to each long-term care facility to ensure residents and staff receive their initial shot and critical booster. The majority of residents and staff will be fully vaccinated three to four weeks after the first visit, depending on which vaccine they receive. CVS Health expects to complete its long-term care facility vaccination effort in approximately 12 weeks, the release states.

“Vaccinating one of our most vulnerable populations is the latest milestone in our multifaceted pandemic response, which includes testing more than 10 million people for the virus since March,” stated Karen S. Lynch, currently Executive Vice President, CVS Health and President, Aetna, who will become the company’s next President and CEO on February 1. “The eventual availability of COVID-19 vaccines in communities across the country will bring us one step closer to overcoming the most significant health challenge of our lifetime.”

The long-term care facility vaccination effort is a precursor to the eventual availability of COVID-19 vaccines at all CVS Pharmacy locations throughout the country subject to product availability and prioritization of populations, which will be determined by states., according to the release.

First COVID-19 vaccines given at Excela Health

Cox Media Group