Biden moves to provide covid vaccine to pharmacies

WASHINGTON — The Biden administration will begin providing covid-19 vaccines to U.S. pharmacies, part of its plan to ramp up vaccinations as new and potentially more serious virus strains are starting to appear.

A White House announcement was expected Tuesday, a person familiar with the plan told The Associated Press. The person spoke on condition of anonymity ahead of the official announcement.

Initially the government will be shipping limited quantities of vaccine to drug stores around the country, but that’s expected to accelerate as drugmakers increase production. Drug stores have become a mainstay for flu shots and shingles vaccines, and the industry is capable of vaccinating tens of millions of people monthly.

The partnership with drug stores was originally announced by the Trump administration last November. At that time, no coronavirus vaccines had been approved.