Empower Clinics Inc announced that its subsidiary Kai Medical Laboratory has started its first coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccine drive-through service in Dallas, Texas, while also leveraging its CARES Act funding status to generate new revenues offering vaccination services in the state.
The Vancouver, British Columbia-based biotech company said that Kai Labs started offering appointments and drop-in drive-through vaccinations at its recently expanded facilities on November 8, 2021.
This new service offering comes less than two weeks after Kai Labs received approval as a COVID-19 Pandemic Provider from the Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS) and the United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), the statement said.
Kai Labs staff offer both Pfizer-BioNTech and Janssen COVID-19 vaccines.
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"The commencement of regular drive-through vaccine clinics is a wonderful complement to its other convenient testing products and services,” said Steven McAuley, CEO of Empower in a statement. “Kai Labs is well-positioned with its recent expansion and newly approved services to execute against its growth goals in the coming months."
As part of its government provider approval, Kai Labs is now approved to offer vaccine clinics on government portals with businesses, schools, and the public sector.
Kai Labs is reimbursed for each vaccination it administers through the CARES Act for all uninsured and further, it is fully reimbursable by all insurance companies. With continued concerns around developing variants, the number of unvaccinated individuals, and the expansion of recent government mandates, continued demand is projected for convenient vaccine clinics.
The Biden Administration announced its mandate for large US companies, those with 100 or more employees company-wide, to implement a mandatory COVID-19 vaccination policy by January 4, 2022. The new rule is expected to cover 84 million workers, 31 million of whom are estimated to be unvaccinated. The number of individuals covered by these announcements could expand in the coming months as the US Labor Department has opened a 30-day comment period on whether this rule should extend to smaller companies.
In a separate announcement, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced its recommendation for children aged 5 to 11 years old to be vaccinated with the Pfizer-BioNTech pediatric vaccine. The CDC estimates this age group could involve the vaccination of an additional 28 million individuals.
Yoshi Tyler, Kai Medical Laboratory President, said: "Vaccinations and testing are vital tools when it comes to building a safe return to normalcy, and I'm proud of the Kai Labs team for continuing to meet American healthcare needs with convenient testing and other healthcare solutions."
Empower is an integrated healthcare company that provides body and mind wellness for patients through its clinics, with digital and telemedicine care, a medical device company, and world-class medical diagnostics laboratories.
Contact Ritika at ritika@proactiveinvestors.com