The Trump administration has announced a deal with Walgreens and CVS pharmacies to provide COVID vaccinations to nursing homes, with the federal government paying part of the cost. Details of the plan were released late Friday.
"These two players have been doing this for a while in terms of their mobile units. they have demonstrated the ability, from an IT perspective, from a training and personnel perspective, from an asset perspective. And we thought they would be our two best partners based on that," HHS deputy chief of staff for policy Paul Mango said.
Walgreens and CVS have agreed to coordinate with long-term living facilities. The government assumes each resident will need two doses over two months.
“In our arrangement with these two players, they are prohibited from charging for the vaccine itself, or for distribution, they will be permitted to build the appropriate insurer or Medicare for the rates that have been established by those respective payers,” Dr. Jay Butler of the CDC said.
CVS and Walgreens staff will administer the vaccinations on-site, inside the facilities. The companies will report data on when vaccinations are done.
“We are not imposing the solution on any nursing home as a voluntary, they have to opt in. this is an adjunct to what other solutions may be. but this will be something that would be available to every nursing home and senior living facility in the country,” Mango said.
Nursing homes can sign up through the CDC starting on Monday.