Google Maps is scheduled to launch a feature that displays locations in the US that offer Covid-19 vaccination.
This Google Maps feature will initially display Covid-19 vaccination sites in four US states, namely Arizona, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas. According to Google, searches for "vaccines near me" have increased five times since 2021 started and that the feature's rollout will ensure it's "providing locally relevant answers."
Vaccination site display feature
Once a user types in the search term "vaccines near me", Google will generate information, which will also be shown in search results in designated information panels, including details about whether an appointment is required, if the vaccine is only available to certain groups and if there's a drive-thru.
Google says it is cooperating with "authoritative sources" for the information, including local governments and retail pharmacies. The feature will be launched in other states and countries later.
A Kaiser Family Foundation survey have shown that 60% of Americans say they are not aware of when or where to get the vaccine. While vaccine distribution has been problematic in the country, President Joe Biden has pledged to deliver 100 million doses in his first 100 days in office.
Aside from the new feature, Google and Alphabet chief executive officer (CEO) Sundar Pichai also said the firm will donate $100 million in ad grants to CDC Foundation, the World Health Organization and other nonprofits to run "critical public service health announcements" about the virus.
Pichai said: "We recognize that getting vaccines to people is a complex problem to solve, and we're committed to doing our part."
Google will also allot certain parts of its facilities, including parking lots and open spaces, in California, New York and Washington for vaccination efforts and administration.
Vaccination initiatives in the US
More than a week ago, President Biden said he will use FEMA and the National Guard to set up Covid vaccine clinics across the US, according to his plan.
Apart from Covid vaccine clinics, the Biden administration will “quickly jumpstart” measures to widen the availability of coronavirus vaccines, particularly at local pharmacies across the US. The plan states that this would ensure that Americans can access doses at facilities near their homes.
“Here’s the deal: The more people we vaccinate, the faster we do it, the sooner we can save lives and put this pandemic behind us and get back to our lives and loved ones,” Biden said at a speech in Wilmington, Delaware. “We won’t get out of it overnight, and we can’t do it as a separated nation.”
Retailer Walmart will expand its Covid-19 vaccinations to more states as part of the Biden administration’s initiative to accelerate distribution.
Walmart, which has been conducting Covid-19 vaccinations in recent weeks at some of its stores in New Mexico and Arkansas, will now be rolling out the vaccine to select locations in New Jersey, Georgia, Indiana, Louisiana, Maryland, South Carolina and Texas, as well as in Chicago, and Puerto Rico.
According to a company spokesperson, each state will decide which population groups are eligible for vaccination, and the vaccine will only be available to those designated groups at Walmart pharmacies.
The spokesperson said: “We are going by what the state tells us in terms of priority groups they want our help vaccinating.” For example, adults ages 65 and over are currently eligible in Georgia, but non-healthcare essential workers are not.
In a blog post on Friday, Walmart wrote that it aims to administer 10 million to 13 million doses of vaccine monthly, “when supply and allocations allow,” across its over 5,000 pharmacies in the US and Puerto Rico.
