Walmart Prepares Its US Stores to Administer COVID-19 Vaccine. The company’s Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Tom Van Gilder, released a statement via Walmart’s website on Thursday. He revealed that 5,000 U.S. stores and Sam’s Club pharmacies are gearing up for COVID-19 vaccine distribution once the vaccine has been approved. I know we are all ready to get back to normal and enjoy life beyond the epidemic, and these vaccines will help us do that, Dr. Tom Van Gilder, Walmart Chief Medical Officer, via CNBC. Dry ice and freezers are being added to pharmacies so that vaccine doses can be properly stored. A Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine is currently under review by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for emergency approval. If the FDA approves the vaccine, Americans could begin receiving it as soon as next week. As of Thursday, COVID-19 has claimed the lives of more than 291,000 people in the U.S. More than 15.55 million have contracted the virus