CVS/pharmacy Completes Emergency Mobile Pharmacy Operations at Houston Astrodome as All Evacuees are Relocated
September 16 2005 - 3:48PM
PR Newswire (US)
CVS filled more than 20,000 prescriptions for 7,000 evacuees at the
Astrodome while the stadium served as a temporary shelter
WOONSOCKET, R.I., Sept. 16 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- CVS/pharmacy
(NYSE: CVS) announced today that it has completed its emergency
pharmacy operations at the Astrodome in Houston, Texas, where it
has been filling prescriptions for Hurricane Katrina victims, now
that all evacuees have been relocated out of the stadium to other
facilities. Utilizing delivery service from area CVS/pharmacy
stores and two mobile pharmacy units on-site at the Astrodome,
CVS/pharmacy filled more than 20,000 prescriptions for 7,000 people
who took shelter in the Astrodome. Ninety percent of these
prescriptions were filled within the first 72 hours of operation.
CVS/pharmacy also deployed mobile pharmacy units to the Convention
Center in Austin, Texas and Kelly Air Force Base in San Antonio,
Texas. It will continue to serve the prescription needs of Gulf
Coast evacuees at local CVS/pharmacy locations. CVS/pharmacy is
continuing its relief efforts in the aftermath of Hurricane
Katrina, as well as providing vital, uninterrupted pharmacy
services in the Gulf Coast. In addition to the costs associated
with CVS/pharmacy's mobile pharmacy deployment and pharmaceutical
distribution, CVS/pharmacy and the CVS/pharmacy Charitable Trust
have donated more than $1 million in supplies and money to
hurricane victims through the American Red Cross and other local
relief organizations. CVS/pharmacy will continue to donate
supplies, including water, ice and personal care items, to
residents and evacuees in the affected areas for as long as they
are needed. Several CVS/pharmacy locations in Baton Rouge,
Louisiana continue to operate 24 hours a day to accommodate the
massive influx of hurricane victims who have relocated from more
heavily damaged areas of the state. In addition, while there are
approximately 160 CVS/pharmacy stores located in the impact area,
only nine stores remain closed. No matter where customers regularly
have their prescriptions filled, they can visit any CVS/pharmacy
location for quick and convenient prescription service. To further
strengthen the ability to serve customers in Gulf Coast stores, CVS
has temporarily relocated employee volunteers from many of the
company's other markets. In addition, CVS/pharmacy is currently
operating two mobile hiring centers in Kenner, Louisiana and
Gulfport, Mississippi. These centers are interviewing job
candidates and helping them find employment at CVS/pharmacy
locations in the affected area. CVS/pharmacy is also directly
assisting its thousands of employees who have been impacted by the
hurricane. All CVS/pharmacy employees who were displaced by the
storm continue to be paid and receive benefits. The company has
also created the CVS Employee Family Assistance Fund to provide
financial help for employees in need. CVS/pharmacy is matching
donations from its employees from around the company who make a
contribution to assist their colleagues. CVS/pharmacy employees in
the impacted area who are in need of assistance should call the CVS
Emergency Support Line at 1-800-770-3810. "CVS/pharmacy remains
deeply concerned for everyone who was affected by Hurricane
Katrina. We have worked exhaustively to ensure that customers
continue to have access to pharmacy services, our employees have
the support and assistance needed to alleviate their hardship, and
the Gulf Coast community has the necessary resources to help
recover from this devastating storm. We will continue to work with
our industry peers and local, state and federal officials to do
everything we can for this massive relief effort," said Eileen
Howard Dunn, Vice President of Community Relations at CVS/pharmacy.
About CVS CVS is America's largest retail pharmacy, operating more
than 5,400 retail and specialty pharmacy stores in 37 states and
the District of Columbia. With more than 40 years of dynamic growth
in the retail pharmacy industry, CVS is committed to being the
easiest pharmacy retailer for customers to use. CVS has created
innovative approaches to serve the healthcare needs of all
customers through its CVS/pharmacy stores; its online pharmacy,
CVS.com; and its pharmacy benefit management, mail order and
specialty pharmacy subsidiary, PharmaCare. General information
about CVS is available through the Investor Relations portion of
the Company's Web site, at http://investor.cvs.com/, as well as
through the pressroom portion of the Company's Web site, at
http://www.cvs.com/pressroom. CONTACT: Mike DeAngelis CVS/pharmacy
401-770-2645 DATASOURCE: CVS/pharmacy CONTACT: Mike DeAngelis of
CVS/pharmacy, +1-401-770-2645 Web site: http://www.cvs.com/
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