Massachusetts

“No appointment necessary.”

 

With demand for shots easing, CVS is now opening COVID-19 vaccine appointments to walk-in patients in Massachusetts.

“Patients are now able to walk-in to select CVS Pharmacy locations to receive a COVID-19 appointment, no appointment necessary,” Matt Blanchette, a spokesman for the pharmacy, told Boston.com in an email.

The move comes after President Joe Biden directed all pharmacies in the federal government’s vaccine distribution partnership to begin providing walk-in hours during a speech Tuesday.

CVS says walk-in appointments will be available at its 389 vaccine-carrying locations in Massachusetts — roughly 94 percent of all CVSs in the state — meaning that people will be able to enter the pharmacy without an appointment, fill out the necessary forms, and get a shot within a relatively short period of time.

Blanchette also noted that “same-day scheduling, including appointments as soon as one hour from time of scheduling,” also remains available on the CVS website. Patients can check the pharmacy’s online scheduler throughout the day to see which locations have appointments available. But the pharmacy says locations should have enough doses to accommodate all walk-ins.

“We continue to orchestrate an all-out effort to vaccinate the nation against COVID-19,” CVS Health President and CEO Karen S. Lynch said in a subsequent statement Wednesday morning.

After months of residents scooping up the scarce number of appointments nearly as quickly as available, the state’s vaxfinder.mass.gov website shows tens of thousands of first-dose appointments available through next week at mass vaccination sites, pharmacies, community centers, and other providers.