Walmart will start offering COVID-19 vaccinations on Friday at about 30 percent of the company’s stores in Florida, as the state continues to focus on giving shots to people ages 65 and older.
During an appearance Tuesday at a Walmart in Jacksonville, Gov. Ron DeSantis announced that Walmart and the affiliated Sam’s Club initially will offer Moderna COVID-19 vaccines to seniors and front-line health care workers at 119 locations in 34 counties, providing about 25,000 doses.
“They're spreading it pretty far and wide,” DeSantis said. “And then as those doses increase from the federal government, they'll be able to do more shots at each store without much of a problem.”
Walmart and Sam’s Club will join Publix and Southeastern Grocers' chains Winn-Dixie and Harveys in providing vaccinations in Florida.
Asked about a timetable to expand vaccinations to the broader population, DeSantis said that will be “once we get through enough of the senior population, where we start to see that demand dwindle a little bit.”
Florida is expected to receive around 325,000 doses of the vaccine this week, up from 307,000 doses it got last week.
For information on Walmart vaccinations, including locations, go to Walmart.com\covidvaccine.
The governor also said 269 additional Publix locations across the state will begin offering the vaccine. The full Publix list is available here.
Southeastern Grocers will begin offering free Moderna doses Thursday at some of its stores in 29 Florida counties, Appointment information and locations are online at winndixie.com/pharmacy/covid-vaccine
Information from WJCT reporters Sydney Boles and Bill Bortzfield was used in this report.
