Michael Ransom understands that Costco will offer COVID-19 vaccinations on February 6 through a report on the neighborhood website Nextdoor. He immediately went to the warehouse club’s website to try to sign up.
Within 20 minutes, he was planning vaccinations for himself and his wife in the Clackamas Costco near their home. Ransom, 75, received his first vaccination at Costco on Monday. His wife, Carol, will receive hair next week.
“It was a sale,” Ransom said.
As part of the initial phase of the Federal Retail Pharmacy program, the federal government last week sent about 12,000 vaccine doses to more than 120 pharmacies at Costco, Health Mart, Safeway and Albertsons in 27 of Oregon’s 36 counties. Each pharmacy received approximately 100 doses.
About 6,500 pharmacies nationwide are currently participating in the program, with approximately 1 million doses per week to these locations. Although the program is currently limited, the White House believes it can be expanded over time, with doses eventually sent to about 40,000 pharmacies nationwide.
Those who are able to make appointments at Oregon pharmacies say the program offers a more convenient and straightforward alternative to mass vaccination centers such as the Oregon Convention Center or Portland International Airport.
The 80-year-old man, Cheryl Long, Paul, tried to sign up for an appointment through the state’s vaccination schedule website on Feb. 8 when Oregonians 80 and older were eligible to receive vaccinations.
Long said her husband spent hours online making an appointment, but it was unsuccessful. He then called 211, the local resource service, but was told he had to call back the next day. Many other elderly people reported similar problems on February 8, as all appointments in the Portland area were locked up in just 2 hours.
“It was all so disturbing,” Long wrote in an email to The Oregonian / OregonLive.
The state briefly opened additional appointments through its schedule website late last week, but the blizzard that hit Portland this past weekend caused thousands of appointments to be canceled.
However, Long’s husband was able to get the vaccine.
She said he got an appointment last Thursday at the Albertsons in Tigard after his daughter personally inquired about availability. He could then easily change the date of the appointment due to the bad weather. On Monday, he received his first shot and was able to make an appointment to receive his second dose in March.
“It was like a dream,” Long wrote. “No rule. We were immediately greeted by a very professional man who gave us the chance. Everything was clean and safe. We parked very close to the front door and had no stairs or driveways. ”
As of Monday morning, there were still about 1,300 available vaccination appointments through Safeway and Albertsons pharmacies in Oregon, although many places have booked all of their appointments, according to Jill McGinnis, a spokeswoman for the two grocery chains, which share ownership and work in tandem.
However, McGinnis said the more than 100 pharmacies Safeway and Albertsons across the state that are currently participating in the federal program will receive a dose dose again later this week. The pharmacies are expected to open new appointments on Thursday afternoon, McGinnis said.
Eligible Oregonians can browse through Albertsons and Safeway for appointments and sign up for available slots by visiting www.albertsons.com/COVID-19 and www.Safeway.com/COVID-19.
Costco also has an online vaccination portal at costco.com/covid-vaccine.html. There are 13 Costco locations in Oregon that are currently participating in the federal program.
Health Mart opened its online appointment planner on Monday. Currently, eight Health Mart pharmacies in Oregon participate in the federal program.
The pharmacies currently expect between 100 to 300 doses per week, according to Kristen Breland, spokesperson for the company. Eligible Oregonians can check on Healthmart.com for available appointments.
Oregon is currently restricting vaccinations to health care workers, people living in nursing homes and other care facilities, teachers and – starting this week – people aged 75 and over. People 70 years and older will be eligible on Monday.
A few pharmacies across the state that are not currently participating in the federal program have received doses directly from provincial grants, including select Fred Meyer pharmacies.
Milwaukie residents Redge Heth, 82, and his wife, Gretchen, 81, spent more than two-and-a-half hours on Feb. 8 to address appointments through the state’s schedule website, but the webpage remained stuck during the login process. Redge eventually managed to get an appointment at the Oregon Convention Center, but Gretchen could not.
This prompted the couple to start investigating information about pharmacies in Oregon that administered the vaccine. On Feb. 9, they both signed up for appointments at the Fred Meyer in Oak Grove, with Redge canceling his appointment at the conference center.
After nearly a year of keeping in touch with friends about Zoom and avoiding most outings, other than the necessary trips to the grocery store, Gretchen got her first shot last Thursday. He received Redge a day later.
“What that means is hope,” Redge said.
– Jamie Goldberg | [email protected] | @jamiebgoldberg