HEART TO HEART INTERNATIONAL INVESTS IN COLD STORAGE UNITS IN PREPARATION OF MEDICINE AND VACCINE DISTRIBUTION
The cold storage units position Heart to Heart International as an integral part of the cold chain distribution system for many vaccines, including COVID-19.
With the release of the COVID-19 vaccine, HHI is positioned to be a storage facility for the highly anticipated vaccine as well as a partner to administer the vaccine.
“With the vital medicines and vaccines that we distribute to countries throughout the world as well as to vulnerable communities right here in the United States, we had been researching, fundraising and pricing cold storage units for the past year,” Kim Carroll, CEO of Heart to Heart International, said.
Thanks to a generous commitment from FedEx, HHI will be able to purchase additional cold storage units for its Lenexa, Kansas, warehouse.
“Now that we have cold storage units in place, with more to come, we have the ability to store the new COVID-19 vaccine, and we are positioned to partner with those who need our help when the vaccine is ready to distribute.”
HHI has representation on the Mid-America Regional Council COVID-19 Vaccination Workgroup and is working with multiple jurisdictions across Kansas and Missouri to support COVID-19 vaccination efforts in the areas of vaccine storage and administration.
In the past several months, HHI has received funding to purchase three cold storage units.
- A 1,200 square-foot walk-in refrigerator big enough to store up to 1 million doses of vaccines with a capability of temperatures of 2-8 degrees Celsius.
- A 1,200 square-foot walk-in freezer large enough to store up to 1 million doses of vaccines with a capability of temperatures of -20 degrees Celsius.
- Ultra-cold storage freezer large enough to store thousands of doses of vaccines with a capability of temperatures of -80+ degrees Celsius.
“With the addition of these coolers and freezers, we are able to be a part of COVID-19 vaccine distribution process and continue to be a part of providing critical health access during the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic.
“In addition, these new cold storage units will allow us to be a part of the cold chain medicine distribution process for our valued pharmaceutical partners. This means that they can donate larger quantities of medicines, and vaccines that we weren’t able to receive and store in the past and distribute them to parts of the globe while maintaining the potency of the medicines,” Carroll said.
“This is incredibly important for certain medicines, like insulin, that we simply haven’t been able to deliver to patients who desperately need it.”
Heart to Heart International moved into its Lenexa, Kansas, headquarters in the spring of 2019 and has been expanding its operations within its larger facility. This expansion includes the plans for the new cold storage units to be funded by FedEx, a longtime supporter.
Heart to Heart International is a licensed wholesale pharmaceutical distributor in Kansas and Missouri.
