Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
CVS and Walgreens To Distribute Vaccine to Nursing Homes
The Hill: Trump Health Officials Announce Plan For Free COVID Vaccines In Nursing Homes
The Trump administration on Friday announced a partnership with two national pharmacy chains to distribute a potential coronavirus vaccine to residents of long term care facilities for free. The partnership with CVS and Walgreens will allow health officials to prioritize a vaccine when one becomes available, so it can be administered to the most vulnerable populations. (Weixel, 10/16)
FierceHealthcare: CVS, Walgreens Make Deal With Trump Admin To Quickly Distribute COVID-19 Vaccines To Nursing Homes
Retail pharmacy chains CVS Health and Walgreens reached a deal with the Trump administration to quickly provide and administer COVID-19 vaccines directly to nursing homes with no out-of-pocket costs. The agreement, announced Friday, focuses on the distribution of a COVID-19 vaccine to the highest-risk individuals ahead of a potential vaccine approval either this year or in early 2021. (King, 10/16)
In other news from CVS —
FierceHealthcare: CVS Pushing For Pharmacy Technicians To Be Able To Administer COVID-19 Vaccines
CVS Health is pushing for pharmacy technicians to be allowed to administer COVID-19 vaccines. The healthcare giant is hiring more than 10,000 full- and part-time pharmacy technicians in Q4 in anticipation of flu season, and urging for them to have an expanded scope of practice that would allow them to vaccinate patients for the novel coronavirus under supervision from an immunization-certified pharmacist. (Minemyer, 10/19)
CNBC: CVS To Hire 15,000 Employees As It Prepares More Covid-19 Cases, Vaccine
CVS Health said Monday that it wants to immediately hire 15,000 employees to prepare for an expected rise in Covid-19 and flu cases this fall and winter. More than 10,000 of those will be full-time and part-time licensed pharmacy technicians who can help dispense medications and administer Covid-19 tests. (Repko, 10/19)
