Walgreens hits big vaccine milestone in UN Foundation collaboration

Walgreens and the United Nations Foundation’s Shot@Life campaign is marking a big milestone. The organizations have officially helped provide 50 million vaccinations to children worldwide with its Get a Shot. Give a Shot. program since it launched in 2013. Walgreens also has set a new goal of providing 50 million more vaccines by 2023. 

“At Walgreens we are immensely proud of our long-standing collaboration with the UN Foundation, providing vaccines to remote areas of the world where vulnerable populations have limited access to health care,” said Alex Gourlay, president of Walgreens and co-COO of parent company Walgreens Boots Alliance. “By being a part of this coordinated worldwide vaccination effort we have helped make significant progress in reducing cases of measles and polio. This is one of the many ways that we are meeting our commitment to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.”

For every immunization that Walgreens administers, the company donates the value of a vaccine to the UN Foundation. In 2019-20, Walgreens said it will donate up to $2.6 million to support vaccines for the 1-in-5 children around the world who lack access to vaccines. 

“The Get a Shot. Give a Shot. partnership saves children’s lives,” said Kathy Calvin, president and CEO of the UN Foundation. “This is worth celebrating, especially as we reach the incredible milestone of donating 50 million vaccines. When businesses like Walgreens mobilize to support United Nations causes, change happens. The UN Foundation is committed to continuing our work together to protect children everywhere.”

Funds from Get a Shot. Give a Shot. go toward Shot@Life to support vaccines for the measles and polio, with Shot@Life providing immunizations for children in Afghanistan, Central African Republic, Chad, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, East Timor and Tanzania. The current Get a Shot. Give a Shot period ends on Jan. 31, 2020. 

Shot@Life is focused on education, connection and empowerment for people to champion global vaccines as an effective lifesaver for children around the world. Through its public education grassroots advocacy and fundraising, Shot@Life works to avert 1.5 million vaccine-preventable child deaths that take place every year. 

Walgreens also has committed to provide $5 million in free flu vaccinations by 2023 for underinsured and uninsured people in the United States and Puerto Rico. This is a continuation of the company’s existing nine-year program to partner with communities to provide free flu immunizations. As of Aug. 31, Walgreens customers have redeemed more than 1.6 million flu vouchers in nine years.