All 838 CVS Pharmacy® locations in the state
using time delay technology for controlled substances
to help reduce organized retail crime
Company also announces major milestones
reached in safe medication disposal and medication safety
education
WOONSOCKET, R.I., April 18,
2023 /PRNewswire/ -- As part of an ongoing
commitment to support law enforcement and build safer communities,
CVS Health® (NYSE: CVS) today announced the installation of time
delay safe technology in all 838 CVS Pharmacy locations throughout
Florida, including those in Target
stores.
The safes help prevent pharmacy robberies and the potential for
associated diversion of controlled substance medications —
including opioid medications such as oxycodone and hydrocodone — by
electronically delaying the time it takes for pharmacy employees to
open the safe. In addition, the safes help improve the safety and
well-being of CVS Pharmacy customers and employees.
The company's rollout of time delay safe technology is in
support of partnerships with local and state law enforcement and
the retail community to fight back against escalating organized
retail crime.
"Supporting law enforcement efforts in their battle against
organized retail crime remains a key focus for our company," said
CVS Region Director Ricardo Lopez
today during a news conference at a CVS Pharmacy in Miami-Dade County. "Criminal activities that
organized retail crime rings fund are a clear danger to our
communities, so it is important that retailers, law enforcement and
political leaders work together to solve this problem."
"I am very proud of our private sector partner for thinking and
implementing innovative ways to fight organized retail
crime. Local, state, and federal law enforcement partners
continuously collaborate with our retail industry to minimize the
economic impact to all of our residents. We strive to
encourage all of the members in the retail industry to join the
fight against organized retail crime," said Director Alfredo
"Freddy" Ramirez, Miami-Dade
Police Department.
"We are proud to support CVS Health in its endeavor to make our
retail pharmacies a safe place to shop and work. Time delay safes
will not only work to combat the opioid epidemic and prevent
criminal activity, but it will also save lives. Thank you for
helping to safeguard your CVS Pharmacy stores to strengthen safety
at retail pharmacies in Florida,"
said Scott Shalley, CEO of Florida
Retail Federation.
CVS Health first implemented time delay safe technology in 2015
in CVS Pharmacy locations across Indianapolis, a city experiencing a high
volume of pharmacy robberies at the time. The company saw a 70
percent decline in pharmacy robberies in that area. Since then,
there has been a 50 percent decline in robberies at CVS Pharmacy
locations with the safes.
The CVS Health time delay safe program is among many company
initiatives to address and prevent prescription medication misuse
and diversion. The company supports over 3,700 safe medication
disposal units in CVS Pharmacy locations nationwide. As of
April 2023, these medication disposal
units, along with those the company has donated to local law
enforcement agencies, have collected more than five million pounds
of unwanted or expired medications that might otherwise have been
diverted, misused, or ended up in the water supply. The 216 safe
medication disposal units located in Florida have collected more than 237,000
pounds of unwanted and expired medication.
CVS Health also announced that nearly two million students and
parents have learned about the dangers of misusing medications
through the company's free prescription drug abuse prevention
education programs, Pharmacists Teach and Dose of Knowledge,
including more than 85,000 Floridians.
Through Pharmacists Teach, CVS pharmacists work with schools in
their communities to help educate children from kindergarten to
grade 12 about the dangers of prescription medication misuse and
abuse. To further amplify the program's impact, CVS Health
partnered with Discovery Education to expand resources and access
through Dose of Knowledge, a program which provides no-cost
standards-aligned resources to empower educators and pharmacists to
address substance misuse and educate students to make good
decisions about their health. The program has resources for parents
and students as well.
For downloadable time delay safe photos, please visit the Media
Resource Center.
About CVS Health
CVS Health® is the leading health solutions company, delivering
care like no one else can. We reach more people and improve the
health of communities across America through our local presence,
digital channels and over 300,000 dedicated colleagues – including
more than 40,000 physicians, pharmacists, nurses and nurse
practitioners. Wherever and whenever people need us, we help them
with their health – whether that's managing chronic diseases,
staying compliant with their medications or accessing affordable
health and wellness services in the most convenient ways. We help
people navigate the health care system – and their personal health
care – by improving access, lowering costs and being a trusted
partner for every meaningful moment of health. And we do it all
with heart, each and every day. Follow @CVSHealth on social
media.
Media contact:
Shannon
Dillon, CVS Health
346-291-7131
Shannon.Dillon@CVSHealth.com
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SOURCE CVS Health