💉 vaccinations as customer acquisition

pandemic shoppers is lob-lame

lola 🌱🌙 @LolaMarieC

If you ever wanna remind yourself how stupid capitalism is, buy a packaged food product from no frills, and then buy that same packaged food product from loblaws. And then remember that they’re run by the same company.

(That’s an example of price discrimination). Hot tip: a good way to learn public policy is to do a table read of legislation [with your friends on Zoom]. How am I? I am currently reading the Competition Act every other Wednesday for one hour. It’s more challenging than I expected.

Richard Cole @KohlRay

@Dan_GT2 @meadllar "It's a mess because @fordnation wants to funnel our tax dollars to Shoppers Drug Mart. He's waiting for them to get up and running. Then, he will say, "Look how great the private sector is," while he throttles back vaccine delivery to PHUs.#sosOntario" RT

Richard Cole @KohlRay

@AliceChiavi It's a mess because @fordnation wants to funnel our tax dollars to Shoppers Drug Mart. He's waiting for them to get up and running. Then, he will say, "Look how great the private sector is," while he throttles back vaccine delivery to PHUs.#sosOntario

With competition on my mind, I thought it might be a good time to check in on Loblaw. By my count, the corporation has almost 70% of the allocated vaccination space to pharmacies in Ontario. That’s not all that startling, as they dominate the pharmaceutical landscape in Canada, and I believe COVID vaccination allocation was partially predicated on the flu vaccine volumes. What’s intriguing is the possibility that pharmacies across Ontario may be under-pricing the vaccination at $13/pop - in Manitoba, it’s something like $20.

Kristen Watt - Pharmacist Mama - she/her #BLM @PharmacistMama

@Anna_M_Huisman @BrettBarrettRPh There are so many more Pharmacies than Shoppers Drug Mart. Especially in ritual and remote areas, we independent pharmacies serve many of the most marginalized people. We don’t have the $$ for the splash. But we are focused on care before profit. Every time.

Shopper’s was also prominently featured in the Premier’s Twitter announcement. 😉

Doug Ford @fordnation

We are continuing to make vaccines more accessible to Ontarians by expanding into even more pharmacies. As of Monday, March 22, Ontarians over 60 can book an appointment at a participating pharmacy near you. Visit covid-19.ontario.ca/book-vaccine/ or call 1-888-999-6488

Brett Barrett (she/her) @BrettBarrettRPh

Anyone else uncomfortable with this tweet? Sure, gov't should promote dift ways to get vaccine, but this feels like an industry-funded commercial. Did mass clinics get similar slick ad-style videos? Also, pharmacist colleague - please pinch the mask around your nose🤦‍♀️ https://t.co/ovwjW8eizA

It is somewhat unsettling that vaccination is also a customer acquisition opportunity for the new PC Health App. The app launched in many provinces last fall, and I’ve previously written about how Loblaw’s points economy for private-health data follows Big Tech’s playbook.

Michael Serbinis @mserbinis

Starting today, residents of Ontario can request their COVID-19 vaccine through the PC Health app. To get started, download the app. Apple App Store: lnkd.in/gkpDHSm , Google Play: lnkd.in/gSpDsby

Not illegal by any means but certainly predatory. Most of all, it’s just…gross. 🤢

Imagine you *had* to download Facebook in order to get the flu vaccine, sign up for TikTok to get immunized against tetanus, or activate Twitter to protect against pertussis.

It would feel super weird, because these are platforms that monetize the data of their users and distort advertising markets. While it’s certainly handy to get a text message when you are able to book your vaccination, it would be better - much more equitable and fair - if there was a province-wide mobile application that connected Ontarians to an appointment at the pharmacy closest to them. Will people that signed up for the app notification be privileged with quicker bookings?

A little while ago, the New York Times has described how Microsoft, Starbucks and Amazon are among the companies offering the government assistance with logistics and operations. Of course the Canadian version is Loblaw (!). While Loblaw Companies Limited and Shopper’s Drug Mart are a productive part of the Creative Destruction Lab’s Rapid Screening Consortium, rather than just support the government with implementation, the company can also recruit users of their health app. It’s a business opportunity in the shrouded guise of public health, and I hate it. 🥸

Erica Shenfeld @EricaShenfeld

Loblaws/Shoppers is spreading it's tentacles into all areas of our healthcare system - private pay telemed (maple) - popular EMR (accuro) - covid tests, shots Are they putting patients or profits 1st? We've seen what privitization can do with our LTCs, let's not repeat the story.

Amit Arya @AmitAryaMD

The #COVID19 pandemic has disproportionately impacted seniors & low-income racialized communities. Yet, the Ontario government hired a Director of Pandemic Response who was a Health Lobbyist working for large corporations to increase profits. We were never all in this together.

Chili's and Beets @chilisandbeets

@fordnation Imagine how much money the province would save if you set up public vaxx clinics instead of paying Loblaws to run the show.

Having these sign ups creates another data advantage for the company - they can gauge sentiment regarding the vaccine and also use this information to direct where the vaccines go themselves.

This is just about pattern-recognition and connecting the dots. Loblaws’ ~invitation~ to download their PC Health app in order to book your COVID-19 vaccination is a blatant and boring abuse of our trust in the public health care system.

Chatting with smart friends online (the only way to sense-make in the pandemic, am I right, ladies?), it was suggested that the Broader Public Service Accountability Act should extend to health service providers.

Generally, the “Broader Public Sector” refers to the organizations that receive funding from the Government of Ontario. They are not, however, a part of the government itself.

You could consider the PC Health App as a vaccination platform of sorts. Delivering a vaccine appointment is a “health service,” and if we’re [so] cool with the private sector helpfully delivering this, then we should call PC Health and Loblaw and Shopper’s a “health services provider” and make them subject to the transparency and accountability requirements for those services.

We should consider this type of health service provider as part of the broader public service.

You can read more about the laws that support accountability and transparency in the broader public service here.

👀 What else has Loblaws been up to?

1. Selling its food-making division.

Bloomberg Canada @BloombergCA

Canada’s billionaire Weston family is selling its namesake food-making division, choosing to focus instead on its supermarkets and vast real estate holdings

trib.alBloomberg - Are you a robot?

2. Continuing to experiment with selling other products online, like: office and school supplies; apparel and accessories; patio, BBQ & garden, and more. Does anyone know of a massively popular website that sells everything to you?

Coralie Waschkowski @coraliew

Really @LoblawsCanada I saw this chair in an ad and liked it so clicked the “shop now” to see the price.. umm why are all the chairs in the $400-$700 EACH range?? Crazy & makes me continue to lose respect for #Loblaws 👎🏽

3. They are also getting attention for the Amazon-esque receipt of government funds while posting record profits.

CUPE Ontario @CUPEOntario

MEDIA RELEASE: The Ford government is handing out $15-billion in electrical subsidies to companies like Loblaws: CUPE Ontario cupe.on.ca/the-ford-gover… #onpoli

4. Also, there was a glitch and chips were not available online. I also found this alarming, but not as alarming as coercing people to download your health app so they can book a vaccination in a pandemic, you know?

Notkay @Notkay8

@LoblawsON why are there no chips available online?

Vass Bednar is the Executive Director of McMaster University’s new Master of Public Policy in Digital Society Program.