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SpartanNash repurposes closed store for COVID-19 booster shots

Former Family Fare supermarket to hold weekly vaccination clinics this month

Russell Redman

October 13, 2021

3 Min Read
Family Fare vaccinations-pharmacy-SpartanNash.jpg
SpartanNash said it will provide free COVID-19 boosters, primary COVID vaccines and flu shots in the clinics at the ex-Family Fare site.SpartanNash

SpartanNash is reopening a onetime Family Fare supermarket in Grand Rapids, Mich., to host COVID-19 vaccine booster clinics through the rest of October.

Plans call for SpartanNash pharmacy staff to provide free Pfizer/BioNTech COVID booster shots to high-risk residents at the former Family Fare site, located at 4325 Breton Rd. SE in Grand Rapids, starting tomorrow and in Thursday clinics on Oct. 21 and 28, the grocery distributor said yesterday. Patients must register online for the 20-minute booster appointments at the clinics, which will administer shots from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. each day.

People eligible for the booster include individuals who completed their first and second dose of the Pfizer vaccine more than six months ago and are either age 65 and older and residents in a long-term care facility; age 50 to 64 with an underlying medical condition; and age 18 to 49 with an underlying medical condition or who work or live in a high-risk setting.

Grand Rapids-based SpartanNash noted that it retooled the onetime Family Fare grocery and pharmacy store for clinic use amid the closure of many COVID vaccine “surge centers” from the earlier part the pandemic. Citing Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates, the company said such clinic locations are expected to provide 80% of all booster shots to communities. SpartanNash reported that it aims to administer 400 shots on each clinic day.

Related:More supermarket chains queue up COVID-19 boosters

“At SpartanNash, we remain committed to making it as convenient as possible to get vaccinated and receive booster shots, especially for our high-risk community members,” Eddie Garcia, director of pharmacy at SpartanNash, said in a statement. 

Flu vaccinations also will be available at the clinics and are safe to administer at the same time as the COVID-19 booster shots, SpartanNash said. The company already offers COVID vaccines and boosters at the nearly 90 pharmacies in its 146 corporate-owned supermarkets, including under the Family Fare, D&W Fresh Market, VG’s Grocery, Martin’s Super Markets and Family Fresh Market banners. Since January, SpartanNash pharmacies also have partnered with local health care systems, municipal health departments and others to provide COVID immunizations.

So far, the Food and Drug Administration has granted emergency use authorization (EUA) only for Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine booster. On Oct. 14 and 15, the FDA’s Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee (VRBPAC) plans to meet to discuss giving EUA status to adult booster doses for the two-shot Moderna and single-shot Johnson & Johnson (Janssen) COVID vaccines. The committee also will examine the use of boosters different from the vaccines — Pfizer, Moderna or Johnson & Johnson — used in the primary vaccination series, aka a heterologous or “mix and match” booster. 

Related:SpartanNash adds telehealth to pharmacy services menu

“Vaccines are one of the most important interventions for bringing an end to the ongoing pandemic. It’s critical that as many eligible individuals as possible get vaccinated as soon as possible,” stated Peter Marks, director of the FDA’s Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research. “Once vaccinated, we want to ensure that individuals continue to be protected against the adverse effects of COVID-19. The available data make clear that protection against symptomatic COVID-19 in certain populations begins to decrease over time, so it’s important to evaluate the information on the use of booster doses in various populations.”

About the Author

Russell Redman

Senior Editor
Supermarket News

Russell Redman has served as senior editor at Supermarket News since April 2018, his second tour with the publication. In his current role, he handles daily news coverage for the SN website and contributes news and features for the print magazine, as well as participates in special projects, podcasts and webinars and attends industry events. Russ joined SN from Racher Press Inc.’s Chain Drug Review and Mass Market Retailers magazines, where he served as desk/online editor for more than nine years, covering the food/drug/mass retail sector. 

Russell Redman’s more than 30 years of experience in journalism span a range of editorial manager, editor, reporter/writer and digital roles at a variety of publications and websites covering a breadth of industries, including retailing, pharmacy/health care, IT, digital home, financial technology, financial services, real estate/commercial property, pro audio/video and film. He started his career in 1989 as a local news reporter and editor, covering community news and politics in Long Island, N.Y. His background also includes an earlier stint at Supermarket News as center store editor and then financial editor in the mid-1990s. Russ holds a B.A. in journalism (minor in political science) from Hofstra University, where he also earned a certificate in digital/social media marketing in November 2016.

Russell Redman’s experience:

Supermarket News - Informa
Senior Editor 
April 2018 - present

Chain Drug Review/Mass Market Retailers - Racher Press
Desk/Online Editor 
Sept. 2008 - March 2018

CRN magazine - CMP Media
Managing Editor
May 2000 - June 2007

Bank Systems & Technology - Miller Freeman
Executive Editor/Managing Editor
Dec. 1996 - May 2000

Supermarket News - Fairchild Publications
Financial Editor/Associate Editor
April 1995 - Dec. 1996 

Shopping Centers Today Magazine - ICSC 
Desk Editor/Assistant Editor
Dec. 1992 - April 1995

Testa Communications
Assistant Editor/Contributing Editor (Music & Sound Retailer, Post, Producer, Sound & Communications and DJ Times magazines)
Jan. 1991 - Dec. 1992 

American Banker/Bond Buyer
Copy Editor
Oct. 1990 - Jan. 1991 

This Week newspaper - Chanry Communications
Reporter/Editor
May 1989 - July 1990

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