Uber, Lyft to offer free rides to vaccination sites

This week, the White House announced that Lyft and Uber will be giving free rides to individuals who were unable to get the COVID vaccine because of lack of transportation. The program will begin in the next few weeks and will run until July 4.

The initiative is a new facet of President Biden's push to ensure 70% of all U.S. adults get at least one vaccine shot by July 4. The two companies are "driving America closer" to reaching that goal, the White House said.

The CDC says the 7-day moving average for vaccinations is now around 2 million per day, down from around 3.2 million a month ago. Demand for vaccines is dropping because most people who want the vaccine have already been able to get a dose. The U.S. has reported more than 32.7 million COVID-19 cases, including more than 582,000 deaths, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University.

In a statement released on Tuesday, Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi said the company committed back in December to giving 10 million free or discounted rides to people needing vaccinations.

“We are honored to deepen our previous global commitments and partner with the White House and Lyft to provide free rides to vaccination sites across the U.S.,” he said. “This is a proud moment for me, for Uber, and for our country. More and more Americans continue to get vaccinated every day -- let’s keep moving forward, together.”

You may visit Uber’s site to learn more about the free rides as well as how to donate a ride for people in need. Lyft will be posting more information in the next few days.

Sources: NPR, CNN, Uber