CVS and Walgreens staff will vaccinate residents and workers in California’s nursing homes and assisted living facilities against COVID-19, Gov. Gavin Newsom announced Monday.
The governor said it will take up to four weeks to vaccinate all staff and residents at nursing homes statewide. After that, the vaccines will go to those in assisted living, residential care and other long-term care facilities.
Nursing homes have been among the hardest hit by the pandemic, accounting for only 5% of the state’s coronavirus cases, but 35% of the deaths.
California opted in to the federal COVID-19 Pharmacy Partnership, which means that CVS and Walgreens will administer the vaccine at no cost to the state or local government, according to Newsom’s office.
“Vaccinating those most vulnerable among us is critical to fighting this virus,” Newsom said in a statement. “By leveraging CVS and Walgreens resources, we can effectively deploy vaccines to residents and staff at our long-term care facilities, which are at higher risk of Covid transmission – and do it at no cost to the state or local government.”
Pharmacists, pharmacy technicians and nurses will go directly to the facilities, with CVS staff heading to about 499 nursing homes and Walgreens to another 357. They will be using Pfizer vaccine doses.
“This partnership is an opportunity to augment other vaccination efforts at the local level to prioritize our most vulnerable Californians where we are seeing the most outbreaks, hospitalizations, and deaths,” Interim State Public Health Officer Dr. Erica Pan said.
The plan excludes facilities in Los Angeles County, which is “committed to their own strategy not in partnership with the pharmacies,” Newsom said.
In L.A. County, the startup Curative will help deliver and administer the COVID-19 Moderna vaccines to staff and residents of skilled nursing facilities, local officials said.
The partnership will help the county vaccinate 69,000 people in 339 nursing facilities by the end of the calendar year, L.A. County officials said.
The state launched its vaccination campaign amid a rapid, unprecedented surge in coronavirus infections that has brought hospitals to their breaking point.
Health care workers, first responders and nursing home staff and residents are being prioritized in the initial, scarce vaccine supplies. Teachers and other essential workers are expected to receive the vaccine in the next phase.