The Hy-Vee Pharmacy in Kirksville continues to be a site where Truman State University students, faculty and Kirksville community members can receive the COVID-19 Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine. Students can receive their vaccine from Hy-Vee by scheduling an appointment online at Hy-Vee.com/covid.
As of April 9, everyone in Missouri over the age of 16 is eligible to receive the vaccine.
Christina Gayman, Hy-Vee director of public relations, said that Hy-Vee pharmacies across the country are administering anywhere between one to 200 vaccines per day. To avoid wasting doses, pharmacy employees will call patients with upcoming appointments to receive their doses early when other appointments are cancelled, Gayman said.
Hy-Vee receives vaccine doses directly from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Gayman said doses are shipped directly to pharmacies on a weekly basis.
As of April 2, those interested in the vaccine could check their eligibility on the Hy-Vee website. However, Gayman said those receiving the vaccine were not required to bring proof of their eligibility.
“[People with] underlying health conditions is currently an eligible group in Missouri … we’ve not been required to ask someone to prove that they have ‘x’ underlying condition,” Gayman said.
Gayman said that the vaccination process has been going smoothly, and as eligibility opens up to all adults in Missouri, demand is expected to rise. However, the CDC will be increasing Hy-Vee’s weekly allocation to help meet the demand.
Anyone interested in getting the COVID vaccination from Hy-Vee does not have to be insured, but Hy-Vee does ask that insured patients or those on Medicare bring their insurance card or Medicare card to their vaccine appointments. Pharmacies bill insurance for administration costs but the patients receiving the vaccine will not see any cost. Uninsured patients may also receive the vaccine at no cost because of a federal grant, Gayman said.
Hy-Vee encourages anyone scheduling an appointment for a two-dose vaccination to schedule both their first and second dose appointments at the same time, Gayman said. This will ensure that the patient is able to receive their second dose on time without having to worry about appointments filling up.