Vaccinate All Educators by April 2021? Acceleration of COVID-19 Vaccination Rollout in Georgia Through the Federal Retail Pharmacy Program

Written by: Jacquelyn S. Clarke and Michael V. Profit

On March 2, 2021, President Biden announced an expansion to the existing protocols governing rollout of the COVID-19 vaccine, through which a goal newly prioritized by the federal government was announced: provide first-shot vaccination, by the end of March 2021, of pre-K through twelfth grade educators, school staff, and childcare workers, nationwide.[1] Helping to facilitate this expansion is the Federal Retail Pharmacy Program, under which certain approved retail pharmacies will receive supply of the COVID-19 vaccine, which then can be provided to the public. As of March 8, 2021, teachers and staff have been eligible in Georgia to receive the vaccine.[2]

As the United States begins to unceremoniously mark the one-year anniversary of many COVID-19-related milestones, the acceleration of vaccine administration provides much-welcomed news. For parents of school-age children, this news may be even more welcomed.

With the promise of eventually making the vaccine available at more than 40,000 pharmacies nationwide, the Federal Retail Pharmacy Program aims to rapidly increase the number of sites certified to administer the vaccine. And it appears that this aim will be achieved: currently, Fulton County, Georgia—estimated population of 1,050,114,[3] in which Hall Booth Smith’s Atlanta office is located—has sixteen designated COVID-19 vaccination sites.[4] However, as currently constituted, fifty pharmacies located within just ten miles of this office are designated as certified vaccine providers[5]—a nearly fourfold increase, and a figure that, over time, promises to grow.

As the vaccine continues to be administered at a statewide rate of about 40,000 per day—including, recently, between 4,000 and 11,000 per day in Fulton County[6]—the Federal Retail Pharmacy Program will provide a significant boost to Georgia’s 118,000 pre-K through 12 teachers, and over 120,000 aides, counselors, librarians, and support staff.[7] Moreover, the most immediate rollout of the Program—that is, the period targeted for maxed-out administration of first dose vaccines, between now and the end of March 2021—alone likely will ease the burden on parents who, heretofore, dual-wielded the responsibility of teacher and worker.

In so targeting pre-K through 12 employees, the federal government, and that of the State of Georgia, are acknowledging this burden; recognizing the importance, on both children and parents, of a more “mainstreamed” educational system; and innovatively employing novel means to achieve the ambitions prescribed them. Eligible persons are encouraged to check the websites of the CDC and Georgia Department of Health, linked at the bottom of this article, for more information on vaccine availability.

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[1] Federal Retail Pharmacy Program, CDC, https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/covid-19/retail-pharmacy-program/index.html. The CDC reports that “most Americans live[] within five miles of a pharmacy,” an indicator of the potential effect of this Program.

[2] Ga. Dep’t of Pub. Health, https://dph.georgia.gov/.

[3] Fulton County Demographics, Fulton County, https://www.fultoncountyga.gov/inside-fulton-county/about-fulton-county/demographics.

[4] Find a Covid Vaccination Site, Ga. Dep’t of Pub. Health, https://dph.georgia.gov/locations/covid-vaccination-site (search for “Fulton”).

[5] VaccineFinder, https://vaccinefinder.org/ (click “Find COVID-19 Vaccines”; then search for vaccines within ten miles of 30303 zip code).

[6] Vaccine Distribution Dashboard, Ga. Dep’t of Pub. Health, https://experience.arcgis.com/experience/3d8eea39f5c1443db1743a4cb8948a9c/.

[7] Georgia Schools, Local School Directory, http://www.localschooldirectory.com/state-schools/GA.