CVS Health to hire 400 Wisconsinites to help administer COVID-19 vaccines

GREEN BAY, Wis. (WBAY) - On Monday, people in long-term health care facilities will start getting the COVID-19 vaccine in Wisconsin.

Two weeks ago, the state’s Department of Health Services (DHS) activated its partnership with the CDC and CVS Health to help with this massive vaccination undertaking.

“We take our vaccine allocated to Wisconsin and reallocate some of it to the program to provide the vaccines to pharmacy chains to go into facilities and vaccinate both residents and staff who opted to receive the vaccine,” said DHS Deputy Secretary Julie Willems Van Dijk.

CVS Health is preparing its team to start this effort on Monday, December 28.

“We’re working together for the common good,” said Jeffrey Lackey, vice president of talent acquisition for CVS Health.

To bolster its team of health care professionals, the pharmacy giant is hoping to hire more than 400 Wisconsinites soon.

“I am absolutely confident that we’re going to hire that and more because I do think that folks just want to be a part of this part of the solution,” said Lackey.

CVS Health is looking to hire 400 additional registered pharmacists, registered nurses and pharmacy technicians to administer the shots to the most vulnerable in the state.

“All of the pharmacist and nurses, many of them will already be vaccination certified, so that’s actually what we’re looking for people who can actually provide the vaccine,” said Lackey. “But we’ll also hire pharmacy techs and they’re like, what I call the oil in the machine. They are going to make sure that all of the logistics are working correctly and that the patients are being seen in the right order.”

Lackey said they are looking for reinforcements to join their team of health care professionals already prepared for the job ahead.

“This is not easy work. This not something we take lightly so we know that we need to make sure that we have plenty of folks reinforcing our teams. We need to take care of them because they’re taking care of our patients right now so that’s really what we’re doing,” said Lackey.

Lackey said they are looking for certified vaccinators, either part-time or full-time because they can be flexible.

“The trouble for us is to make sure that we can get them all in the right place. That’s why I just say, ‘check out the www.cvs.jobs/2020 and you can find exactly whether you want…if you want a full-time role within the company or a part-time seasonal role, all of those are open and opportunities for you to take on here,” said Lackey.

Lackey said CVS Health has already administered thousands, if not millions, of flu shots to residents in nursing homes already this year, so COVID-19 vaccines should be no different.

“Now we’re taking that same tour de force and pulling it into the vaccine and doing the same thing,” said Lackey. “We’re leading with heart and we really care deeply about those patients.”

To join the CVS Health ‘Covid-19 Vaccine Support Team’, head to www.cvs.jobs/2020

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