Workers and independent business people - even in the professional class - are supremely mad at monopolists. But they aren't looking to a political party for help.
I look forward to giving this a good read, but I have to recommend one thing. Aetna was bought in 2018 for $69 billion. How much was paid to CEO of Aetna at that time??? Half a billion dollars! That should be noted.
From a customer service perspective, CVS is awful. My spouse needed some post-operative medication a few months ago, but unfortunately she needed it on a Sunday. She spent an hour or two on the phone that day calling the local CVS to find out if the prescription was ready, but they never picked up the phone. I ended up going myself and learned that they'd taken the phone off the hook because there were only two pharmacy employees scheduled on Sundays - a pharmacist and a clerk. It strikes me as dangerous and potentially worse that any pharmacy can simply ignore all its phone calls for an entire day, but the staff felt they had no choice because they were completely swamped by in-person customers.
My husband was a pharmacist at Walgreens for almost 30 years and retired three years earlier than he wanted because the work environment was so horrific. And he hadn't had a raise in six years. I feel for young pharmacists who are stuck. It didn't use to be like this until a big multinational took over and prioritized the bottom line over literally everything else, including patient safety.
Practiced pharmacy for 38 years with 4 different chains. Never had management support or adequate staff. Constantly overwhelmed. The answer is NATIONAL UNION. And federal mandated staffing levels. Nothing will ever change if left to the number crunchers.
To amplify Matt's take on CVS. Yesterday, I went over to the nearest drug store - CVS to get a free flu shot. Sign in the window said free flu shots here. When I asked for my ouchi, they asked for my health insurance. I asked why. Because they bill them for the shot. Okay then, I am retired military so Tricare - nope. I am a disabled veteran with VA health benefits - nope. Medicare? Nope, sorry. I subsequently learned that Publix Grocery honors all three. Do they ever think I will set foot in another CVS? Cancel Culture is free to everybody.
I worked at Quidel and can assure you that Stenzel was well compensated with QDEL stock options, which exploded when their Covid diagnostic got approved. Meanwhile, there are quite a few biotechs out there with excellent covid tests and treatments in the pipeline (I’m at one now). FDA delays these approvals severely. Why? Well, we don’t have a Tim Stenzel. And, we have not paid off any FDA officials (via lobbyists).
Our town had a Rite-Aid store for years. The pharmacy was staffed by two pharmacists and a couple of rotating assistants. The pharmacy was friendly, helpful, efficient. Prescriptions were always correct and ready on time. With two pharmacists, if someone came to get vaccinated, there was still one pharmacist who was keeping up the fulfillment of prescriptions, answering questions, etc.
Walgreens wanted to open a store in our town at a prominent intersection - which was available for lease. But, Walgreens business had to be approved by the planning commission and the borough council. Because the town had the RiteAids store and an independent pharmacy, the commission recommended that the council not approve the addition of another pharmacy - and the council followed suit.
Well, we have a Walgreen's anyway. They bought out the Rite Aid store - and right at the height of the pandemic and before the availability of vaccines.
Because there was one pharmacist there were long lines at pharmacy. Not only was the time to fill a prescription much longer, they often didn't have medicines in stock. We're not talking about exotic cancer drugs. We're talking about things like Omeprazole and Atorvastatin.
I feel sorry now for the staff because customers were complaining bitterly, not only about the pharmacy but the over-the-counter stock as well.
But here's the thing that blew my mind completely: I went to the Walgreen's site to write a complaint about what a bad replacement for our RiteAid store Walgreens had turned out to be and how unhappy many people were. Just as I was about to press the send button on my missive, a notice popped to say that, once I pressed the button, *my comment would become the property of Walgreen's.*
The hell, you say, I thought. (Lord, they monetize everything, don't they.?)
I copied, then deleted my words and went to look for a review site. I found one and put my opinion there.
Staffing mandates and doing away with "fill quotas" would go a long way towards making pharmacies safer. Hearing a new pharmacist voice the fear "I'm afraid I'm going to kill someone with a mistake because I'm so tired and overwhelmed with the number of prescriptions I'm REQUIRED to fill" is heartbreaking. My daughter went into this field excited, and now is a broken shell of who she once was.
I lasted 31 years as a pharmacist but finally retired this year because the working conditions had deteriorated so badly. It was 6 years before I wanted to retire. I wonder how many people in the profession are retiring or quitting like me?
We would not need all of these pharmacists and their assistants, or at least the workloads would be much lighter, if we only did what the rest of the world does: dispense most drugs prepackaged. The idea that we pay people to literally count pills and put them in containers is simply absurd. Machines can count and package drugs for far less cost and far more accurately. Typically a box of bubble-packed pills is one course of antibiotics or one month of consumption. It is so convenient, fast, and cheap - plus it allows time for the pharmacist to consult, which is where they are most valuable. Counting pills by hand is just another way that the U.S. is falling behind the rest of the world, and to most this just seems normal. We need to get angry.
I am pretty ignorant to this, appreciate your deep dives into things that I don’t think about but should be aware of. Your reporting is detailed and doesn’t feel like you’re trying to get me… just giving me facts. It’s refreshing (and some of it, a little depressing)
Part of the problem is the power of corporations. Maybe we should be more radical and think about how to make capitalism work without corporations. Associations of persons who all bear individual responsibility for what their association is doing: Yes. Corporations that are persons and have rights: No. Corporations owned by shareholders who are not responsible for the actions of the corporation: No.
I look forward to giving this a good read, but I have to recommend one thing. Aetna was bought in 2018 for $69 billion. How much was paid to CEO of Aetna at that time??? Half a billion dollars! That should be noted.
From a customer service perspective, CVS is awful. My spouse needed some post-operative medication a few months ago, but unfortunately she needed it on a Sunday. She spent an hour or two on the phone that day calling the local CVS to find out if the prescription was ready, but they never picked up the phone. I ended up going myself and learned that they'd taken the phone off the hook because there were only two pharmacy employees scheduled on Sundays - a pharmacist and a clerk. It strikes me as dangerous and potentially worse that any pharmacy can simply ignore all its phone calls for an entire day, but the staff felt they had no choice because they were completely swamped by in-person customers.
My husband was a pharmacist at Walgreens for almost 30 years and retired three years earlier than he wanted because the work environment was so horrific. And he hadn't had a raise in six years. I feel for young pharmacists who are stuck. It didn't use to be like this until a big multinational took over and prioritized the bottom line over literally everything else, including patient safety.
Much needed analysis! And great journalism. Thanks!
Practiced pharmacy for 38 years with 4 different chains. Never had management support or adequate staff. Constantly overwhelmed. The answer is NATIONAL UNION. And federal mandated staffing levels. Nothing will ever change if left to the number crunchers.
CVS should be deconstructed..
To amplify Matt's take on CVS. Yesterday, I went over to the nearest drug store - CVS to get a free flu shot. Sign in the window said free flu shots here. When I asked for my ouchi, they asked for my health insurance. I asked why. Because they bill them for the shot. Okay then, I am retired military so Tricare - nope. I am a disabled veteran with VA health benefits - nope. Medicare? Nope, sorry. I subsequently learned that Publix Grocery honors all three. Do they ever think I will set foot in another CVS? Cancel Culture is free to everybody.
I worked at Quidel and can assure you that Stenzel was well compensated with QDEL stock options, which exploded when their Covid diagnostic got approved. Meanwhile, there are quite a few biotechs out there with excellent covid tests and treatments in the pipeline (I’m at one now). FDA delays these approvals severely. Why? Well, we don’t have a Tim Stenzel. And, we have not paid off any FDA officials (via lobbyists).
A personal story:
Our town had a Rite-Aid store for years. The pharmacy was staffed by two pharmacists and a couple of rotating assistants. The pharmacy was friendly, helpful, efficient. Prescriptions were always correct and ready on time. With two pharmacists, if someone came to get vaccinated, there was still one pharmacist who was keeping up the fulfillment of prescriptions, answering questions, etc.
Walgreens wanted to open a store in our town at a prominent intersection - which was available for lease. But, Walgreens business had to be approved by the planning commission and the borough council. Because the town had the RiteAids store and an independent pharmacy, the commission recommended that the council not approve the addition of another pharmacy - and the council followed suit.
Well, we have a Walgreen's anyway. They bought out the Rite Aid store - and right at the height of the pandemic and before the availability of vaccines.
Because there was one pharmacist there were long lines at pharmacy. Not only was the time to fill a prescription much longer, they often didn't have medicines in stock. We're not talking about exotic cancer drugs. We're talking about things like Omeprazole and Atorvastatin.
I feel sorry now for the staff because customers were complaining bitterly, not only about the pharmacy but the over-the-counter stock as well.
But here's the thing that blew my mind completely: I went to the Walgreen's site to write a complaint about what a bad replacement for our RiteAid store Walgreens had turned out to be and how unhappy many people were. Just as I was about to press the send button on my missive, a notice popped to say that, once I pressed the button, *my comment would become the property of Walgreen's.*
The hell, you say, I thought. (Lord, they monetize everything, don't they.?)
I copied, then deleted my words and went to look for a review site. I found one and put my opinion there.
Staffing mandates and doing away with "fill quotas" would go a long way towards making pharmacies safer. Hearing a new pharmacist voice the fear "I'm afraid I'm going to kill someone with a mistake because I'm so tired and overwhelmed with the number of prescriptions I'm REQUIRED to fill" is heartbreaking. My daughter went into this field excited, and now is a broken shell of who she once was.
I lasted 31 years as a pharmacist but finally retired this year because the working conditions had deteriorated so badly. It was 6 years before I wanted to retire. I wonder how many people in the profession are retiring or quitting like me?
We would not need all of these pharmacists and their assistants, or at least the workloads would be much lighter, if we only did what the rest of the world does: dispense most drugs prepackaged. The idea that we pay people to literally count pills and put them in containers is simply absurd. Machines can count and package drugs for far less cost and far more accurately. Typically a box of bubble-packed pills is one course of antibiotics or one month of consumption. It is so convenient, fast, and cheap - plus it allows time for the pharmacist to consult, which is where they are most valuable. Counting pills by hand is just another way that the U.S. is falling behind the rest of the world, and to most this just seems normal. We need to get angry.
Pharmacy technicians are not the equivalent of nurses. This statement shows your ignorance of the nursing profession.
I am pretty ignorant to this, appreciate your deep dives into things that I don’t think about but should be aware of. Your reporting is detailed and doesn’t feel like you’re trying to get me… just giving me facts. It’s refreshing (and some of it, a little depressing)
Part of the problem is the power of corporations. Maybe we should be more radical and think about how to make capitalism work without corporations. Associations of persons who all bear individual responsibility for what their association is doing: Yes. Corporations that are persons and have rights: No. Corporations owned by shareholders who are not responsible for the actions of the corporation: No.
Thanks for sharing these important stories.