Skowhegan, Maine – Pat and John Thomas were watching the news last night when they saw Walmart in this downtown Maine city of 8,000 people making an appointment for vaccination against Covid-19. They had signed up to shoot at a hospital about a month ago, but hadn’t heard of it yet. Mrs. Thomas, a 74-year-old retiree, jumped on the computer.
On Friday the couple got their first doses of Skowhegan Walmart under a new federal government program that provides Covid-19 vaccines directly to retail pharmacies across the country.
“We will be able to see our family and friends,” said Ms Thomas, a former deputy director of a bank who has been married to her husband, a 78-year-old retired accountant, for 48 years. “It will be good to be able to visit and go somewhere when you are not afraid.”
Walmart Inc., the largest retailer and private entrepreneur in the United States, will become one of the largest distributors of the Covid-19 vaccine as the federal government calls on retail pharmacies to speed up what has been a hectic rollout.
Last week, 21 retail chains and pharmacy networks began administering these doses, including CVS, Walgreens, Kroger and grocery stores in the 50 states. Initially, the government plans to give about a million doses a week directly to pharmacies. About 200,000 people go to Walmart, a spokeswoman said.