Walgreens, Uber Partner Up To Address Vaccine Equity Barriers

DEERFIELD, IL — Since the rollout of the coronavirus vaccine in December, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has noted a number of barriers have hindered equitable access to the vaccine in communities of color. Walgreens and Uber Technologies, Inc. announced Tuesday they will work together to address these concerns.

The pharmacy retailer, which is owned by Deerfield-based Walgreens Boots Alliance, was selected by the CDC last week to administer COVID-19 vaccines in 15 states and jurisdictions — including Chicago and Illinois — under a federal program focusing on high-risk, socially vulnerable populations. By partnering with the ride-sharing company headquartered in San Francisco, Walgreens hopes to make it easier to connect with residents in these communities through a number of initiatives, including free transportation provided by Uber to vaccine clinics.

"By combining Walgreens deep experience in community care with Uber’s transportation technology and logistics expertise, we will take bold action to address vaccine access and hesitancy among those hit the hardest by the pandemic," said John Standley, president of Walgreens, in a release.

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Vaccinations are scheduled to begin in Walgreens stores Friday for eligible individuals based on state and jurisdiction guidelines, and may include healthcare workers, people age 65 and older, and individuals with pre-existing conditions.

On Tuesday, a COVID-19 vaccine sign-up page run by Walgreens couldn't be accessed by some users with an "updates in progress" message coming up. The online scheduler was down at various times throughout the day due to the volume of users attempting to log in, according to Walgreens.

"Due to high demand, we experienced temporary outages on our vaccine scheduler earlier today. Our dedicated teams worked diligently to resolve the issues, and we can confirm our scheduler is working as intended," a Walgreens corporate spokesperson told Patch. "We continue to be committed to ensuring a seamless scheduling experience to achieve the shared goal of vaccinating our most vulnerable populations as quickly as possible."

According to Tuesday's release, Walgreens and Uber will roll out several initiatives over the coming months as vaccines become available for mass distribution including:

• Free transportation to Walgreens stores and offsite vaccine clinics as part of a larger commitment by Uber to provide up to 10 million free or discounted rides to vaccinations. Pilot transportation programs will begin in cities including Chicago, Atlanta, Houston, and El Paso.
• One-click access to pre-schedule rides on Uber when a Walgreens vaccination appointment is made.
• New in-app features designed to more seamlessly connect people, including active drivers, delivery people, and freight carriers using Uber, Uber Eats or Uber Freight, with vaccines when become more readily available.
• New educational program with the National Urban League to address vaccine hesitancy.

"Chicago Urban League is encouraged by Walgreens and Uber’s efforts to partner with organizations like ours that work tirelessly in the fight for equity and equality. We look forward to collaborating with them to help ensure vaccines reach into communities of color more equitably," said Karen Freeman-Wilson, president & CEO, Chicago Urban League, in the release.

According to Walgreens, nearly 80 percent of the U.S. population lives within five miles of a Walgreens pharmacy. The company said it has recently expanded different models of care to ensure the delivery of vaccines in underserved and rural areas, such as mobile and off-site clinics. Additionally, more than 70 percent of Walgreens COVID-19 testing sites are in socially vulnerable areas.

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In addition to Chicago and Illinois, the CDC said Walgreens will also administer COVID-19 vaccines as part of the federal program in Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Kentucky, Maryland, New Hampshire, New Mexico, New York, New York City, North Carolina, Puerto Rico, Vermont, Wisconsin and West Virginia.

“Transportation should never be a barrier to health care. We look forward to building on this exciting new partnership with Walgreens, harnessing the power of the Uber platform to help connect more people with vaccines, as we all work together to help end this pandemic,” said Dara Khosrowshahi, Uber CEO, in the release.