US rolls out walk-in Covid vax in pharmacies, mobile clinics

US President Joe Biden, earlier this week, announced to provide vaccinations on a walk-in basis in tens of thousands of pharmacies and mobile clinics, the New York Times reported.

Washington: While many poor countries are yet to receive access to Covid-19 vaccines, but for people living in the US getting inoculated can be as easy as walking into a pharmacy, the media reported.

US President Joe Biden, earlier this week, announced to provide vaccinations on a walk-in basis in tens of thousands of pharmacies and mobile clinics, the New York Times reported.

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“We’re going to make it easier than ever to get vaccinated,” Biden was quoted as saying.

Retail chains like Walmart, Walgreens, Safeway and Stop and Shop have announced vaccines to walk-in clients at some locations or in mobile clinics, the report said.

The Biden administration targets to inoculate 70 per cent of American adults with at least the first shot by July 4.

Federal health officials have also directed drugstores and grocery-store pharmacies to offer second doses of the vaccine to people who received their first shot from a different provider.

Some US states have also offered a free inoculation in exchange for a ticket to a baseball game, a stiff drink or $100, the report said.

The country is also expected to get the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) authorisation for vaccinating adolescents ages 12 to 15.

However, the demand for Covid-19 vaccinations has fallen as the country approaches 150 million vaccinated people.

The average number of people getting a first or single dose each day has fallen by about 50 percent from the peak on April 13, the report said.

According to a research from the Duke Global Health Innovation Centre, the US is expected to have 300 million or more coronavirus vaccine excess doses by the end of July, raising concerns on uneven global distribution of Covid vaccines.

Given the current pace of vaccinations, 92 of the world’s poorest countries may not reach even 60 per cent coverage until 2023 or later.

While confirmed purchases of vaccines globally cover 8.6 billion doses, four of the world’s high-income countries, with a population of 1.2 billion (16 per cent of global population), account for 4.6 billion doses (53 per cent of all purchased doses).

On the other hand, the low-income countries hold just 770 million doses, the study showed.