MADISON (NBC 26) — More than 100 Walgreens in Wisconsin will receive shipments of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine, state health officials announced Thursday.
The initiative is part of the new Federal Retail Pharmacy Program, which launches this week. Wisconsin Department of Health Services says the program is a collaborative effort between the federal government and state health officials to provide free COVID-19 vaccinations at participating pharmacies.
DHS says Wisconsin will launch the program with 178 Walgreens locations across the state, with the majority of sites located in underserved areas. For the first week, the federal government will directly ship 17,800 doses of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine to the Walgreens locations.
Anyone currently eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine in Wisconsin will need to visit the Walgreens website to schedule an appointment. Walgreens will also be launching a call center for individuals to schedule appointments for those who may not have access to a computer.
DHS says the vaccine doses shipped to Walgreens come directly from the federal government and will not be taken out of Wisconsin’s weekly allocation. The vaccines will be limited and based on the national availability of COVID-19 vaccines.