Source:  PRESS RELEASE, 8/14/20

Under the leadership of President Trump, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and Department of Defense (DoD), in support of Operation Warp Speed (OWS) announced today that McKesson Corporation will be a central distributor of future COVID-19 vaccines and related supplies needed to administer the pandemic vaccinations.

“Today’s announcement puts another building block in place as the Nation moves toward a safe and effective COVID-19 vaccine,” said CDC Director Robert Redfield, M.D.. “America’s march toward one or more safe and effective COVID-19 vaccines is a combined effort between American industry and the federal government. McKesson is a leader in their field, and we welcome their expertise and dedication to public health.”

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is executing an existing contract option with McKesson to support vaccine distribution. The company also distributed the H1N1 vaccine during the H1N1 pandemic in 2009-2010. The current contract with McKesson, awarded as part of a competitive bidding process in 2016, includes an option for the distribution of vaccines in the event of a pandemic.

Detailed planning is underway to ensure rapid distribution as soon as the FDA authorizes one or more vaccines.  Once these decisions are made, McKesson will work under CDC’s guidance to ship COVID-19 vaccines to administration sites.

About Operation Warp Speed
OWS is a partnership among components of the Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of Defense, engaging with private firms and other federal agencies, and coordinating among existing HHS-wide efforts to accelerate the development, manufacturing, and distribution of COVID-19 vaccines, therapeutics, and diagnostics.

About HHS & CDC
HHS works to enhance and protect the health and well-being of all Americans, providing for effective health and human services and fostering advances in medicine, public health, and social services. To learn more about federal support for the nationwide COVID-19 response, visit coronavirus.gov.

CDC works 24/7 protecting America’s health, safety and security. Whether disease start at home or abroad, are curable or preventable, chronic or acute, or from human activity or deliberate attack, CDC responds to America’s most pressing health threats. CDC is headquartered in Atlanta and has experts located throughout the United States and the world.