Uber and Walgreens to offer free rides to COVID-19 vaccine centres

The coronavirus vaccine is here and a number of countries and organizations have come together to cooperate and reach different sections of people for administration. Ride hailing site Uber and pharmacy giant Walgreens have joined hands to make it easier for people to reach the nearby pharmacy to get a vaccine for COVID-19. The companies released a joint statement that mentioned that Uber will be offering free rides to Walgreen stores and clinics for people who do not have a car and live in underserved communities.

The ride hailing site will be working with the charitable partners like the National Urban League that will be identifying people who require such rides. The program will be available in the cities like Houston, Atlanta, El Paso, Texas and Chicago. A spokesperson from Walgreens assured that the free rides will be available by next week in Atlanta and will gradually be expanding to other cities as well. The fresh partnership and the efforts are a part of the promise that was made by Uber in the month of December, 2020 when it had assured that it will be offering rides for free or at discounted rates that will make sure that the transportation does not become a problem for people who want to get their vaccinations.

Walgreens will be taking over an additional role to launch vaccines later this week. The company will be giving out the vaccines to the priority groups first like the senior citizens or people with pre-existing conditions. The Biden administration had made an announcement that it will be sending direct shipments of the doses to nearly 6,500 stores across the nation. The plan is to expand the program to 40,000 pharmacies.

The rollout of vaccines has been slowed down due to limited supplies. Walgreens and Uber have said that they also intend to work together in a number of other ways.

Photo Credits: Pixabay