When natural disasters strike, CVS Caremark is ready to help. Working with national, state and local first responders, like the American Red Cross, to provide financial support, product donations and teams of volunteers, CVS Caremark helps the communities it serves when they need it most.
Most recently, CVS Caremark jumped into action to help communities that were devastated by Hurricane Sandy in the fall of 2012. CVS Caremark worked quickly to reopen all stores that were closed due to the storm. In some cases, generators were used for stores located in areas that were coping with lingering power outages. In Rockaway Beach, NY, and Margate City, NY, the company set up temporary mobile pharmacies so customers could continue to get important medications they needed to stay healthy and supplies, like paper towels, bleach, batteries, and snacks. Teams of employees also ventured out into the communities to see how they could help their neighbors. Some of them even delivered prescription medications to stranded customers and helped them get care at nearby MinuteClinic locations.
Many people in the hardest hit neighborhoods in Rockaway Beach and Staten Island lost everything. To help, CVS Caremark established a co-pay waiver program at select stores for customers who couldn’t pay for their prescription medications. For its pharmacy benefit management members, CVS Caremark offered additional assistance in accessing their prescription medications following the storm. CVS Caremark provided significant donations of funds and supplies to local social service organizations that were offering direct aid to residents. In some cases, CVS/pharmacy store teams delivered items, like water, directly to relief sites. Volunteers from MinuteClinic assisted patients at a storm shelter and helped facilitate prescriptions for patients in need.
With about 200,000 employees nationwide, it’s likely CVS Caremark employees will be affected by natural disasters as well. In addition to assisting customers, CVS Caremark is poised and ready to assist colleagues in the wake of these devastating events. The CVS Caremark Employee Relief Fund, which is funded in part by employee donations, provides short-term, immediate financial relief to employees who’ve suffered significant hardship as a result of a natural disaster, family death, medical emergency or other unforeseen events.
