Cure CVS Now Blog

Recalled Tylenol products still on CVS shelves in California

2010-01-25T14:06:31Z

Cure CVS has found expired food, infant formula and over-the-counter medication for sale at hundreds of CVS stores. While many of these problems persist, now it seems there's another reason to be cautious of the products on some CVS shelves.

Recalled Tylenol products still on store shelves [Bakersfield Now, 1/20/09]

BAKERSFIELD, Calif. -- Walking out of a local pharmacy store, Kim Van Tassoe said she was not aware of a recall of numerous Tylenol products.

"It's very concerning, and I had no idea," said Van Tassoe.

The list includes batches of Tylenol, both regular and extra strength, Children's Tylenol, Eight-hour Tylenol, Tylenol Arthritis, Tylenol PM, Children's Motrin, Motrin IB, Benadryl, Rolaids, Simply Sleep and St. Joseph's Aspirin.

Read the full story at Bakersfield Now.

Connecticut Attorney General Files Suit Against CVS for Expired Products

2009-12-01T18:06:03Z

In June 2009, Cure CVS sent a letter to Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal, calling on the Attorney General to investigate CVS's sales of expired products in Connecticut. Cure CVS visited 20 CVS stores in Connecticut in May 2009 and found expired products at over half of them.

On Monday, five months later, Attorney General Blumenthal announced that Connecticut is suing CVS for selling expired goods. According to Reuters, "antacids, baby formula, cough medicine, energy drinks and foods including eggs, milk and yogurt" were among the expired products found by the Attorney General's office for sale at CVS stores. According to WFSB in Hartford, the investigations - which took place in 2008 and 2009 - "showed that the problem worsened last year, and that nearly half of CVS stores surveyed this year were found selling expired products."

Blumenthal said of the lawsuit:

"CVS peddled potentially tainted food and ineffective medicine. Whether CVS was careless or heedless or overzealous for revenue, it betrayed its trust to consumers."

Monday's announcement comes after CVS agreed to pay $875,000 to settle allegations in New York on issues surrounding the sale of expired products. New York State Attorney General Andrew Cuomo filed suit against CVS in June 2008 for "its pervasive sales of expired products." Earlier this year CVS also agreed to pay almost $1 million to settle similar allegations in California. And the City of Philadelphia created a law prohibiting the sale of expired non-prescription drugs, infant formula, baby food, milk, milk products and eggs within Philadelphia. The law was inspired by CVS's recurring problems with the sale of expired goods in the city.

Taken together, these actions point to a widespread problem at CVS pharmacies. CVS has been caught selling expired products at stores across the country, and while the steps taken in Connecticut, California, New York and Philadelphia are promising, many more consumers could be at risk. If you find an expired product for sale at a CVS pharmacy near you, be sure to let us know about it.

Related:

MI Attorney General Finds CVS Pharmacy in Grand Rapids Charging $140 for Flu Medicine

2009-11-23T22:59:19Z

As this year's cold and flu season intensifies, many pharmacies are giving out free doses of flu medicine. But the Michigan Attorney General found that the CVS Pharmacy on Fuller Ave. in Grand Rapids, MI. is not only not giving away the medicine for free, it's charging more than any other pharmacy in the state it surveyed.

In an undercover investigation, the Michigan Attorney General's Office surveyed 50 pharmacies across the state to see how much they charged for the flu treatment and prevention medicine Tamiflu. Among the Attorney General's findings: the CVS Pharmacy on Fuller Ave. in Grand Rapids charged $140 for medicine which many pharmacies have been giving away for free. That's more than any other pharmacy surveyed in Michigan. You can see the full results of the Attorney General's survey here.

"The high cost at some pharmacies of a drug that can save lives is disturbing," Michigan Attorney General Mike Cox said in a statement. Attorneys General in Mississippi and Connecticut agree: both are investigating Tamiflu prices at pharmacies in their respective states.

Senator Christopher Dodd, who chairs the Senate health subcommittee on children and families, has asked for a federal investigation into pricing differences.

"Forcing some parents to pay three times the cost for medicine for their sick child during a national health crisis is deplorable," Dodd said in a statement. "Price gouging is never acceptable = but price gouging on Tamiflu endangers our children. If it's happening, it must be stopped, and it must be stopped now."

This isn't the first time customers have faced price issues at a CVS Pharmacy. The chain is the single most penalized retailer in Massachusetts for overcharging and other pricing violations. CVS has also been caught charging more than its advertised prices, as noted in a survey by the Chicago Department of Consumer Services. 54% of the CVS stores inspected by the agency in September 2007 were charging consumers more than items' advertised prices.

Prices for H1N1 drug Tamiflu vary widely for same dose [USA Today, 11/18/09]
AG probes varied prices of liquid Tamiflu at Michigan pharmacies [Detroit Free Press, 11/23/09]
Report Shows Some Parents Being Charged 3X More For Children's Medicine [Senator Christopher Dodd Press Release]

New York Attorney General reaches settlement with CVS Caremark over expired products in New York State

2009-11-10T22:01:24Z

CVS Caremark has agreed to pay $875,000 to settle allegations on issues surrounding the sale of expired products in New York State. The settlement comes after New York State Attorney General Andrew Cuomo filed suit against CVS in June 2008 for "its pervasive sales of expired products."

This is the second time that CVS has agreed to settle charges of selling expired goods in New York. In 2003, after being caught selling expired medicine, CVS signed an "Assurance of Discontinuance" agreement with the state and promised to refrain from selling expired goods. The Attorney General had found expired CVS-brand children's non-aspirin pain reliever, topical anti-infection ointment and ibuprofen tablets. The company paid a $3,500 penalty.

The Attorney General's more recent investigation found 142 CVS stores - or about 60% of those visited - selling products such as baby formula, milk, eggs and over-the-counter drugs past their expiration dates. Attorney General Cuomo, quoted in an article by Dow Jones, explained the terms of the new settlement:

"CVS will pay $875,000 in penalties, costs and fees, and will commit to policies and procedures designed to prevent expired products from being stocked on its shelves, including training for CVS employees...CVS stores in New York will undergo internal compliance checks for expired products, with any store that fails a compliance check paying a $2,500 penalty...[and] the settlement also requires CVS to post notices reminding customers to check expiration dates of over-the-counter drugs, infant formula, milk, and eggs in the aisles in which these products are sold."

New York is not the only state where CVS has been caught selling expired goods. In June, Cure CVS called on the Attorneys General of 39 states and the District of Columbia to investigate the company's sale of expired goods in those jurisdictions.

Have you found expired products at a CVS store near you? Use our photo uploader to send us shots of what you've found.

CVS settles N.Y. charges it sold expired products [Reuters]
NY AG: CVS To Pay $875,000 To End Expired-Products Probe [Dow Jones Newswire via Wall Street Journal]
Statement from New York State Attorney General Andrew Cuomo

In Photos: Calcutta House Speaks Out

2009-09-25T16:03:53Z

Read more about Sept. 24th's press conference in Philadelphia here.

Amidst budget crisis, CVS refused to deliver medicine to AIDS non-profit without immediate payment

2009-09-24T17:55:27Z

At a press conference today outside a CVS Pharmacy in Philadelphia, leaders of the non-profit Calcutta House announced that the organization is severing long-standing ties with CVS Pharmacy. The announcement comes after CVS suspended prescription service to some of Philadelphia's most vulnerable patients last week, amidst a state budget crisis in Pennsylvania.

When Calcutta House, which serves AIDS patients who are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless, asked its vendors for compassion during a difficult financial time, all of them were happy to help--except for CVS. When the small organization ordered its regular supply of prescription drugs from CVS, the pharmacy chain showed no sympathy and refused to fill the order without immediate payment.

"Calcutta House has worked with CVS/Pharmacare for years, and our residents depend on these prescriptions," said Calcutta House Executive Director Matthew Teter. "The company's recent actions reveal that it cares more about its bottom line than the health of the patients it claims to serve. That's not the kind of company we want to give our business to."

Calcutta House normally orders between 15,000 and 18,000 dosages of medicine each month. The outstanding balance on its account when CVS refused to fill the prescription order was less than $300.

]]> Putting Profits Ahead of Patients
CVS has a pattern of putting profits ahead of patients, and its treatment of Calcutta House is only the latest example.

The pharmacy chain has been found to lock condom cases disproportionately in stores in low-income communities and communities of color. This practice is particularly troubling given that HIV/AIDS is the number one killer of black American women between the ages of 25 and 34, and that the rate of new HIV infections among Latinos is three times the rate of whites. The HIV/AIDS infection rate in Philadelphia is 50% higher than New York City and five times the national average.

CVS has also been caught selling a range of expired products in its stores in Philadelphia, including infant formula, medicine, milk and eggs. The Philadelphia City Council and Mayor Michael Nutter recently passed into law a bill banning expired products such as these from being sold in the city. CVS's continuing sale of expired goods was a prominent factor in the Council's decision to take action on the issue.

CVS Takes Millions in Tax Breaks, Subsidies

2009-09-21T18:09:10Z

CVS Caremark Corp. made $3.21 billion in profit in 2008 - up almost 22% from the year before. And while much of that was made selling toothpaste and aspirin in its stores, CVS had an additional source of gains last year: tax dollars.

CVS has taken massive tax breaks and subsidies from the states and cities where it operates its stores, padding the revenue of its multi-billion-dollar pharmacy empire. In May of this year, a report from the Rhode Island Division of Taxation revealed CVS pays less than half the normal corporate income tax rate in Rhode Island, where CVS has its headquarters. The reduced rate is made possible by a state tax loophole and has allowed CVS to avoid paying nearly $14 million in state taxes.

On top of it corporate tax strategy, Providence Business News reports that CVS also tops the list of companies benefiting from corporate tax credits in Rhode Island. According to the report, CVS received $12.8 million in tax credits in the state - 40% of the total credits allocated that year in Rhode Island.

Meanwhile, in Washington, D.C., CVS is set to receive $1.9 million in tax increment financing - a city-paid subsidy - to build a single pharmacy. In a city with thriving retail pharmacy competition and a whopping 52 CVS stores , are such tax incentives really necessary?

Considering the numerous problems at CVS stores - continuing problems with expired products, pricing violations in multiple states, unequal access in low-income communities and communities of color, and questions of patient privacy violations - it seems that these credits, breaks and subsidies could be better spent.

Victory in Philadelphia: Expired Goods Bill Becomes Law

2009-09-17T15:05:13Z

Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter recently signed into law (PDF) a bill prohibiting the sale of expired non-prescription drugs, infant formula, baby food, milk, milk products and eggs within Philadelphia. Many thanks to the Cure CVS coalition members who made this victory possible!

Cure CVS initially found outdated products at CVS stores in Philadelphia in late 2008, and revisited stores in early 2009 (PDF). As late as May of this year, CVS was still selling expired goods in its Philadelphia stores, despite citations from state inspectors and complaints from consumers.

The new law is a fantastic step forward for consumers in Philadelphia, but CVS stores are selling expired goods in stores all over the country, not just in Pennsylvania. In hopes of ending this practice nationwide, Cure CVS sent letters to the Attorneys General of 39 states and the District of Columbia, asking that CVS be investigated for selling expired goods.

Click here to read about your state.

These incidents aren't isolated: our investigation found evidence that CVS has a pattern of selling expired products. If you find an expired item on the shelf of your local CVS store, let us know about it: upload your photos of expired products found at CVS stores.

Change to Win Calls on FTC to Investigate CVS Caremark Merger

2009-09-03T14:32:26Z

Change to Win chair and SEIU Secretary-Treasurer Anna Burger issued the following statement regarding a meeting Wednesday with Federal Trade Commission Chairman Jon Leibowitz.

"We have asked the FTC to open a full-scale investigation of CVS Caremark's practices and re-examine the company's 2007 merger. The merger of the largest retail pharmacy (CVS) and the second-largest PBM (Caremark) has created the nation's largest provider of prescription services--and serious risks for consumers and health plans. The merged entity presents potential risks in such vital areas as patient privacy, value to health plans, conflicts of interest, and quality of service.

CVS Caremark now has access to patient prescription information on an unprecedented scale--handling almost 1 in 3 of all patient prescriptions in the country.

Change to Win represents workers in CVS Caremark plans that cover more than 10 million people. On behalf of these health plan members, Change to Win is greatly concerned that CVS Caremark could be exploiting its access to a massive amount of private patient information without meaningful consent or knowledge by plan participants.

We delivered to Chairman Leibowitz letters of concern about the merger from health plans and purchasing coalitions that cover more than two million individuals. These frontline payers for health care see the dangers of a pharmacy giant controlling the drug costs and data for their members.

I appreciate the FTC's consideration of our concerns, and Change to Win will continue to sound the alarm about CVS Caremark to safeguard the health and privacy of millions of health care consumers across the nation."

CVS Pharmacist on "ReadyFill" Prescription Refill Service

2009-08-12T18:15:46Z

Over on Consumerist, an anonymous CVS pharmacist talks about the company's "ReadyFill" automatic prescription refill service. Customers can opt-in to the program and a computerized system will track which prescriptions are due to be refilled, calling customers to encourage them to come in to a CVS store.

At best, this is a convenient way to remember your prescriptions. At worst, it's an example of CVS using private patient information to sell more at its pharmacies. The automated program is supplemented by "store-generated calls about refill reminders" - that is, phone calls from pharmacists who are already busy filling prescriptions and talking to customers. From the Consumerist:

"In high volume stores, this can be over 100 people that have to be called. Every single employee hates these. They're incredibly stupid because people generally stop taking a medication for a good reason, but we're supposed to ask people if they want to refill it. One store once called a customer that had died. Oops."

The pharmacist goes on to explain that many stores, hoping to meet corporate-set quotas, have begun to enroll customers in ReadyFill without their knowledge. The source details higher enrollment rates in ReadyFill translate to higher bonuses for pharmacists, who are thus inclined to enroll as many people as possible, with or without their permission.

"I approached my district manager with the fact that the store was auto-enrolling prescriptions, which I felt could be an issue down the line. He didn't care because as soon as they started doing that, they started making the number needed to satisfy the metric."

This practice could mean problems for customers and their prescriptions, but more troubling is the fact that CVS can manipulate prescription information without a customer's knowledge or consent. Programs like ReadyFill aren't the only way CVS profits from prescription information: the company has sold data on prescription drug purchases at its stores to third-party companies, and received payments from drug makers for marketing activities conducted using this type of data.

Customers should be advised: who do you trust with your prescription information?

CVS Will Automatically Refill Your Prescription, Consent Be Damned [Consumerist]

Rally in Worcester Against Overcharging at CVS Stores

2009-07-27T19:28:26Z

Worcester News Tonight reports on the rally at a Worchester, MA. CVS on Friday over pricing irregularities at CVS stores. In the report (found here), several people present at the rally spoke about overcharging at CVS stores.

"CVS is by far the worst retailer in the state of Massacusetts for illegally overcharging customers. We've seen it here in Worcester," said Deanne Dworski-Riggs, of Cure CVS. She went on to say, "You know we've spoken with a former manager at CVS and they said they would rather pay the fines and continue to overcharge customers than address the problem."

One shopper interviewed for the report explained that she had been overcharged at CVS just the day before. "Yesterday I pay $3.49 for milk," she explained, "and they have a big sign for $2.89. Definitely they need to just have the right prices, just advertise the right prices, and when we go to the register, we pay for what we were told."

Worcester CVS stores caught overcharging [Worcester News Tonight]

Massachusetts Consumers Need Protection from Retail Overcharging

2009-07-27T18:01:48Z

Representatives from Cure CVS testified today before a Massachusetts state senate joint committee hearing, urging elected leaders to uphold the state's item pricing laws. Multiple bills are under consideration by the legislature, and revisions could weaken item pricing laws which currently require food and grocery retailers to sell any item in the store at the lowest price indicated on an item, sign or advertisement. Revisions to the laws could restrict the state's power to protect consumers from retailers that overcharge.

CVS Caremark Corp., the nation's largest pharmacy chain, is by far the most penalized food retailer in the state for overcharging and other pricing violations, according to Massachusetts Office of Consumer Affairs and Business Regulation. And the overcharges aren't always just an oversight: some Boston-area CVS stores are still overcharging, even after being notified of specific pricing violations.

"CVS gives us hundreds of reasons why lawmakers need to keep our state's item pricing laws intact," Faron McLurkin of Cure CVS said at today's hearing before the state senate. "Seven hundred and eleven reasons, to be precise. That's the number of overcharges state inspectors found at CVS last year."

Overcharges at CVS increased 67 percent from 2007 to 2008, indicating that CVS has failed to correct prior violations of state item pricing laws. On average, state inspectors found almost five times more overcharges per inspection at CVS stores than at all other retailers in the state.

Although CVS stores made up only 6.6 percent of all state pricing inspections in 2008, CVS's violations accounted for 32 percent of all overcharges caught by the state that year. That's almost one third of all the overcharges inspectors found in Massachusetts. Massachusetts Consumer Affairs and Business Regulation Undersecretary Barbara Anthony has ordered CVS to correct its illegal overcharging problems.

To learn more about CVS's pricing violations in Massachusetts, download a copy of Cure CVS's report Your Total Comes To More than the Advertised Price: How CVS Hasn't Fixed Its Pricing Violation Problems in Massachusetts (PDF).

Worcester Rally Calls on CVS to Stop Overcharging Customers

2009-07-27T15:17:44Z

Community members and activists rallied in Worcester, MA. on Friday calling on CVS to stop overcharging its customers.

Overcharges found at CVS stores in Massachusetts increased 67 percent from 2007 to 2008, indicating that the retailer has failed to correct prior violations of state item pricing laws. On average, Massachusetts inspectors found almost five times more overcharges per inspection at CVS stores than at all other retailers in the state. Although CVS stores made up only 6.6 percent of all state pricing inspections in 2008, CVS's violations accounted for 32 percent of all overcharges caught by the state that year. That's almost one third of all the overcharges inspectors found in Massachusetts.

Luz Ramirez, lead organizer at Neighbor to Neighbor, said at Friday's rally: "I've lived and worked in Worcester for almost 20 years and I know that residents of Worcester can't afford to pay any more than the advertised price on essentials like food and medicine."

Massachusetts Consumer Affairs and Business Regulation Undersecretary Barbara Anthony has ordered CVS to correct its illegal overcharging problems, and met with the company earlier this month over the issue.

Read more about CVS's ongoing pricing problems in Massachusetts in Cure CVS's recent report, Your Total Comes to...More Than the Advertised Price: How CVS hasn't fixed its pricing violation problems in Massachusetts (PDF).

Massachusetts moves to hold CVS accountable for overcharging customers

2009-07-14T17:49:41Z

CVS is the most penalized food retailer in Massachusetts for overcharging customers -- but now the state is ordering CVS to stop illegal overcharges.

WBZ-TV (CBS) in Boston reports that "in 2007 and 2008, no retailer paid more in fines for overcharging customers than CVS, according to data from the state's Office of Consumer Affairs."

"State inspectors found 425 instances of overcharging in 2007, and 711 in 2008. The state fines CVS $359,600 for the violations. The number of violations was significantly higher than those for other retailers."

"These problems are solvable. Other retailers have solved them. It takes training the labor force, it takes management initiative and oversight, but none of this is insolvable. And I think it's fair to say retailers understand that and now they really have to. The rubber's meeting the road and now they have to bring about results," said Barbara Anthony of the Office of Consumer Affairs and Business Regulation.

Watch the WBZ-TV coverage here: http://wbztv.com/video/?id=78764@wbz.dayport.com

Or read the full story here: http://wbztv.com/local/cvs.shaws.overcharging.2.1079024.html

Kansas City Star investigates CVS stores over condom lock-up

2009-07-13T19:29:04Z

Video from NBC News in Kansas City.

The Kansas City Star recently visited area CVS stores to check for the presence of locked condom cases -- and its findings mirror those of our own Cure CVS surveys conducted in other markets across the country, indicating that CVS locks condoms disproportionately in communities of color. CVS's chief competitor, Walgreen's, has a corporate policy prohibiting locking up condoms in its stores.

Furthermore, the Kansas City Star investigation revealed that, contrary to CVS's claims, CVS does not always make smaller, three-pack boxes of condoms available without staff assistance, even in stores in which it locks up the larger quantity boxes.

UPDATE: The video above, from NBC News in Kansas City, discusses how some community organizations are taking action on this issue.

Read the full article that appeared on the front page of today's Kansas City Star here.
Read NBC Kansas City's coverage of the issue here.