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Smaller pharmacies prepare for vaccines in rural areas

"Community pharmacies, especially at the independent retail level, especially in rural areas like where I work in Zephyrhills, is very critical,” a pharmacist said.

ZEPHYRHILLS, Fla. — As COVID-19 vaccines become more widely available, pharmacies will play a huge role in getting doses to the average person. 

CVS and Walgreens already have contracts with the federal government for tens of thousands of doses, but smaller, independent pharmacies will help close some of the gaps in areas larger chains don't always reach.

RELATED: As the vaccine approval process progresses, concern for rural America grows

"Community pharmacies, especially at the independent retail level, especially in rural areas like where I work in Zephyrhills, is very critical,” said Sandeep Singh, the pharmacy manager at Benzer Pharmacy.

This becomes critical to getting vaccines to those who might not have larger chain pharmacies nearby.

"If there is an opportunity for me to travel to a small clinic or a small gym where I can administer to people that don't have the access to transport themselves to my pharmacy, I'll do that. It’s whatever it takes. It's all hands on deck,” Singh said.

Singh says his drugstore is preparing now for shipments of COVID-19 doses thanks to a federal pharmacy partnership through CPESN, a national network of pharmacies. So, he's ordering swabs, syringes and gearing up for drive-through vaccinations. He says his location will likely get Moderna's version once it's approved.

"Because we are a community pharmacy, getting the Pfizer vaccine is going to be a little bit difficult because the storage of that requires negative 70-degrees Celsius temperatures,” he said.

CVS and Walgreens are locations that will get that Pfizer vaccine. CVS already has 150 new job openings in the Tampa Bay area for nurses and pharmacists to administer doses. Local universities are already preparing students to work at any pharmacy or medical facility that needs help.

"Our students now have the capability, under guidance, to be able to vaccinate people out in the community, including COVID-19,” said Dr. Kevin Sneed of the University of South Florida’s Taneja College of Pharmacy.

Benzer Pharmacy expects to have vaccines as early as late January.

"I just hope that I can help push forward 300,000-plus people's legacy in trying to administer this vaccine,” Singh said.

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