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Uber, PayPal and Walgreens set up a Vaccine Access Fund

Anyone can donate and help to cover the cost of rides to COVID-19 vaccination sites.

MOZCO Mateusz Szymanski via Getty Images

Uber has teamed up with PayPal and Walgreens to create a Vaccine Access Fund with the aim of covering the cost of trips to COVID-19 vaccination sites, especially for people in underserved communities. The three companies are getting the fund rolling with a joint $11 million donation. Starting today, Uber and Uber Eats users can donate to the fund through those apps.

The PayPal Giving Fund, which powers Uber's in-app donation feature, allows people to make donations without any transaction fees or other deductions. You can also make a donation to the Vaccine Access Fund via PayPal's website.

A community development organization called Local Initiatives Support Corporation will receive the funds and help local nonprofits to set up free rides to vaccination sites for people who need them. If there's any money left over, the LISC will use the funds to help people in underserved communities get to other medical appointments.

PayPal previously donated $5 million to fully or partially cover the costs of Uber rides to vaccination sites, while Uber and Walgreens partnered earlier this year to offer people in socially vulnerable areas free rides to a pharmacy or clinic to get inoculated. In December, Uber pledged that it would provide up to 10 million free or discounted rides to help people get to places where they could receive the vaccine.

Meanwhile, in February, Lyft rolled out features that allow users to cover the cost of another person's ride. Although they're not completely analogous with the Vaccine Access Fund, the Rides for Others and Lyft Family options make it easier for people to pay for friends' and family members' trips.

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