Hair Salons Could Be Coronavirus Vaccine Distribution Centers

Beauty salons are on the table as potential COVID-19 vaccine distribution sites, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Why salons? Health experts are considering different community gathering points for vaccine distribution. “Maybe it’s in beauty salons or places where people tend to congregate,” the CDC’s director of the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases said in June.

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Health experts say it makes sense to adapt distribution to a community’s needs in order to reach people who may be wary of healthcare settings, specifically for populations of color. Similar public health programs have seen success in the past. For instance, some programs have taken diabetes screening into barbershops to reach Black men, who have significantly higher rates of diabetes complications.

The CDC published guidance to create temporary COVID-19 vaccine clinics at off-site locations, such as churches or community centers. Other ideas include mobile outreach units, curbside clinics or home visits, QZ.com reports.

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States have been told to be ready to distribute a potential vaccine by late October, but distribution logistics are still being worked out. The vaccine distribution will be nationally coordinated, with a centralized distribution system that pushes the vaccine to people who need it. Several vaccine trials are happening now and results are expected next month.

Front-line healthcare workers will likely be the first to get the vaccine, but the government is still working out which at-risk demographics should get it next. Various plans suggest medically vulnerable groups should take priority, including older people living in crowded settings and people with multiple existing conditions that put them at risk for more serious infection.