Gov. Beshear Visits UPS Vaccine Distribution Hub

UPS is moving massive amounts of vaccine; everyone 16 and older can get their Shot of Hope

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (April 27, 2021) – As all eyes fall on the commonwealth for the 147th running of the Kentucky Derby, Gov. Andy Beshear on Tuesday visited the main UPS global air hub to highlight the role Kentuckians are playing in distributing coronavirus vaccines throughout the nation to save lives and end the pandemic.

The Governor, joined by leaders at UPS including David Quintilio, senior vice president of UPS Healthcare, visited Worldport Core, where millions of packages are sorted on the way to their final destinations, the freight facility and the Healthcare Command Center, where they track and monitor vaccine shipments, including the temperature and location.

“It is great to see Worldport in action. This is truly a world-class facility, with more than 2 million packages going through here daily, including vaccines that are saving lives in the commonwealth and throughout the country,” Gov. Beshear said. “In a week when a lot of the world has their eyes on Kentucky and one of our signature industries – Thoroughbred racing – and on our culture, sports and hospitality, this seemed a perfect time to visit a major employer in the commonwealth that is doing so much to help this country win the war against COVID.”

UPS has played a key role in delivering all three approved COVID-19 vaccines: Pfizer, Moderna and Johnson & Johnson. The company has demonstrated a near-perfect track record of on-time delivery of vaccines across the country and around the world, even in spite of inclement weather that affected large portions of the United States. To date, UPS has delivered more than 200 million doses worldwide and 160 million doses domestically, 99.9% on time. In addition to transporting the approved vaccine, UPS also is providing logistical support for 80% of the leading vaccines currently in clinical trials.

“For over 20 years, UPS has provided supply chain services for many of the world’s leading health care companies. But our work never has been as critical as it is now in delivering life-saving COVID vaccines,” Quintilion said. “We are supporting vaccine efforts in 46 countries, with near-perfect on-time delivery across the globe.”

As of Monday, 1,726,346 Kentuckians had received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine. Currently everyone 16 and older is eligible for vaccination. To see all vaccination sites and free transportation options to and from vaccination appointments, visit vaccine.ky.gov. To see a list of vaccination sites that have openings this week, visit vaccinemap.ky.gov. If Kentuckians have questions, they should call the state’s COVID-19 Vaccine Hotline, 855-598-2246 or TTY 855-326-4654 (for deaf or hard-of-hearing Kentuckians).

Even prior to its role in moving vaccine, UPS was helping meet the needs of the health care community. Early in the pandemic, UPS moved more than 24 million pounds of personal protective equipment and stored a large amount of PPE at its Louisville facility for distribution.

With about 25,000 employees, UPS is one of the largest employers in the commonwealth. The massive Worldport is the largest automated package sorting hub in the world with 5.2 million square feet, 155 miles of automated conveyor belts and the ability to sort 416,000 packages per hour.

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