In increasingly positive news for the senior living and care industries, CVS Health and Walgreens have completed the administration of the first round of COVID-19 vaccine doses to skilled nursing facilities across the country, the firms both announced Monday. CVS reported that the pharmacy had administered almost 2 million shots to date through the federal Pharmacy Partnership for Long-Term Care Program. The administration of second doses also is well underway, according to the firm, and it is expected to be completed within four weeks.
In a similar vein, Walgreens announced that it has administered more than 1 million COVID-19 vaccinations across long-term care facilities and other vulnerable populations identified as part of state and jurisdiction distribution plans.
In addition to the immunizations taking place at SNFs across the country, Brookdale Senior Living also announced that as of Friday, the company had held COVID-19 vaccination clinics at 500 communities for its residents and community employees. As a result, more than 40,000 vaccinations have been administered by CVS Health at these communities nationwide in just over four weeks.
“Our teams have done an outstanding job in preparing and conducting COVID-19 vaccine clinics,” said Kim Elliott, Brookdale’s senior vice president of clinical services. “We have worked hard to create a culture of vaccine acceptance because the high-risk population we serve is depending on us. We’ve increased communication and encouraged early discussions with primary care physicians to augment the information we have provided.”
This article appeared in the McKnight’s Business Daily, a joint effort of McKnight’s Senior Living and McKnight’s Long-Term Care News.
