SPRINGFIELD, Mass. — Big Y Pharmacy and Wellness Centers have administered over 30,000 flu shots this year, a record number for the chain. 

 

Health officials continue to make another urgent push to encourage the public to get vaccinated. In the US, this flu season has been one of the most significant in recent memory with nearly 20 million illnesses, 210,000 hospitalizations and 13,000 deaths from flu so far, according to CDC estimates. Experts say it's not too late to get vaccinated. Each Big Y Pharmacy location still offers flu vaccines, no appointment is necessary.

 

In addition to their flu vaccinations that continue to increase daily, Big Y Pharmacies have also set records from last fall's Big Y Big Vax Week. This second community wide event spanned every one of Big Y's 73 locations throughout Massachusetts and Connecticut through a combination of their pharmacy locations and on-site clinics for all customers, employees and their families. While clinic locations offered seasonal and high dose flu as well as COVID-19 vaccines, in-store pharmacies offer a variety of additional vaccines such as Pneumococcal (pneumonia), Shingrix (shingles), Tdap (Tetanus, Diptheria, and Pertussis), Hepatitis A and B, Meningococcal (Meningitis), MMR (Measles, Mumps and Rubella), Guardasil (HPV). Big Y Pharmacy teams administered almost 16,000 vaccines evenly split between flu and COVID-19 vaccines during their 2022 Big Y Big Vax week.

 

Over the past year, Big Y has expanded its pharmacy program to specifically support all of their immunization efforts and community outreach including adding the new position of Immunization Coordinator. Elaine Zimnoski, Big Y's Immunization Coordinator, is eager to applaud the teams at Big Y Pharmacy for their record-breaking contributions to their second annual Big Vax week and more. 

 

"I am so very proud of our incredible pharmacy staff for their extraordinary efforts this past year. Their dedication to protecting individuals continues to show Big Y's impact in the communities we serve. Our goal with expanding our immunization program is to reduce the burden of respiratory illnesses everywhere. We understand the importance of assisting our communities and providing access to preventable health care through services such as immunizations. I am grateful for the trust our patients have in us. Our professional pharmacy teams look forward to continue to serve their communities in 2023."