Asda to offer first in-store supermarket Covid vaccinations - here’s how it will work

Asda will become the first supermarket to offer Covid vaccinations in-store, as the UK expands its vaccine rollout. The supermarket chain will offer 250 jabs a day, seven days a week, from 8am to 8pm, by turning its George clothing section into a vaccination centre in its Birmingham store. Asda to administer Covid vaccines in-store Asda said it was chosen by NHS England to open a vaccination centre from its in-store pharmacy in Birmingham, with the vaccines to be administered by qualified Asda staff from the week beginning 25 January. The supermarket has been approved to offer the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine, which is the most difficult vaccine to store out of the three jabs currently approved for use in the UK. Asda said it is working with the NHS in order to assess which other of its stores could be used as vaccination centres, and the company has also offered all 238 of its in-store pharmacies - as well as its qualified pharmacists - to help with the rollout of the Oxford/AstraZeneca jab. How will it work? Asda has said that people will receive their vaccination appointment via the NHS and will have the option to go to their store if it’s convenient. However, people have been asked not to contact their vaccination centres directly. Roger Burnley, Asda CEO and President, said that the company is eager to do everything they can to help with the vaccination programme rollout, and that they have a large network to be able to do so. Mr Burnley said: “We are incredibly proud to provide this service and are keen to do all we can to help the NHS and Government accelerate the rollout of the vaccination programme. “We have an extensive nationwide logistics network that could support the storage and distribution of the vaccine and our highly-trained pharmacy colleagues are experienced in delivering large vaccination programmes, having recently provided nearly 200,000 flu jabs to members of the public. “We are on hand to provide the NHS with any practical support required so that more people can quickly receive the vaccine.”