US Pharmacies Could Administer Up To 100 Million Doses of Covid-19 Vaccine a Month. Here's How

(CNN)Shipments of Covid-19 vaccines will be headed to pharmacies next week under a federal program that aims to get more people vaccinated quickly.

Twenty-one "national pharmacy partners and networks of independent pharmacies representing over 40,000 pharmacy locations nationwide" are taking part in the program, according to a government fact sheet, which includes a list of all participating pharmacies or networks.

In phase one of the distribution plan, 1 million doses will be sent out to about 6,500 stores including Walgreens, CVS, Walmart, Publix pharmacies, and others, starting on February 11.

Many pharmacies already vaccinate people against a number of illnesses, including the flu and shingles. Some experts have suggested that pharmacies nationwide will have the capacity to administer 100 million doses of the Covid-19 vaccine once supply is available.

"Based on conservative assumptions, pharmacies have the capacity to meet the demand for 100 million vaccine doses in one month when that level of the vaccine supply is available," Steven Anderson, president and CEO of the National Association of Chain Drug Stores, told reporters last month.

Pharmacies are also "readily accessible in most communities, with most Americans living within five miles of a pharmacy," White House Covid-19 Response Coordinator Jeff Zients said earlier this week.

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