Walgreens resolves COVID-19 vaccine supply after appointment challenges
After disruptions, the pharmacy confirmed 'all stores now have the supply needed to meet demand'
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Walgreens is adjusting its COVID-19 vaccine availability in response to ongoing appointment disruptions, a company spokesperson told Fox News Digital.
Customers on social media have reported numerous vaccine appointment cancellations at Walgreens locations.
On the social media platform known as X (formerly Twitter), user @DobryJane wrote on Sept. 24 that she had two appointments canceled, one day after the next.
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"Called directly – that store doesn’t even do them!" the user said.
Another X user @AbbyShupe expressed her disappointment when Walgreens canceled her appointment "less than an hour before."
"I assume they ran out since I’ve heard of this happening," she wrote.
Signage for a Walgreens pharmacy drive-thru location in Louisville, Kentucky, on Thursday, March 24, 2022. The pharmacy said it has improved its COVID-19 vaccine process in response to ongoing appointment disruptions. (Luke Sharrett/Bloomberg via Getty Images / Getty Images)
A Walgreens spokesperson told FOX Business on Monday that these issues are being amended, as the drugstore is "working closely with our distributor to ensure the updated Pfizer and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines are available at locations nationwide for eligible individuals."
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"All stores now have the supply needed to meet demand in their communities," the spokesperson continued.
"Additional appointments have been added to our scheduler and will continue to be made available at our sites based on supply."
A Walgreens spokesperson told FOX Business on Monday that the issues are being amended, as the drugstore is "working closely with our distributor to ensure the updated Pfizer and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines are available at locations nationwide for eli (Jeffrey Greenberg/Universal Images Group via Getty Images / Getty Images)
Walgreens.com and the Walgreens app will also be updated with real-time appointment availability to provide patients with "accurate information."
The company said the issue stemmed from the time required to move the new vaccine from the manufacturer to the distributor to provider sites.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| WBA | WALGREENS BOOTS ALLIANCE INC. | 8.66 | +0.36 | +4.34% |
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Appointments are now being made available on a "rolling basis" as supply becomes available.
"Our goal continues to be to ensure vaccine access across our communities for those who want to be immunized," the company spokesperson said.
"Our goal continues to be to ensure vaccine access across our communities for those who want to be immunized," a Walgreen's spokesperson said. (REUTERS/Dado Ruvic / Reuters)
"We defer to manufacturers and distributors for additional supply chain details."
Walgreens assured customers that its pharmacy staff is "ready to help patients navigate the fall and winter respiratory illness season and discuss which vaccines are right for them and their loved ones, including assistance with rescheduling should their appointments be impacted by any unforeseen delays."
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The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced last month the approval and authorization of updated versions of mRNA COVID-19 vaccines for emergency use.
The new vaccines, which are manufactured by Pfizer and Moderna, are "formulated to more closely target currently circulating variants," particularly the Omicron variant XBB.1.5, according to a news release from the agency.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced last month the approval and authorization of updated versions of mRNA COVID-19 vaccines for emergency use. (Sarah Silbiger/Getty Images / Getty Images)
The vaccines have also been formulated to "provide better protection against serious consequences of COVID-19, including hospitalization and death," the FDA stated.
The FDA's actions "make the vaccine available for those who may need it because they are immunocompromised or have chronic diseases, cancer, obesity or heart or lung disease," noted Dr. Marc Siegel, clinical professor of medicine at NYU Langone Medical Center and a Fox News medical contributor.
"For most young, healthy people who have had previous vaccination, booster and COVID, however, the booster will not be necessary, in my opinion," Siegel told Fox News Digital.
"The target group should be the elderly, obese, those with chronic illness and the immunocompromised."
Fox News Digital's Melissa Rudy contributed to this report.
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