CVS Cutting Hours June 2020

[radio frequency]

You need to do more research into nursing before saying that. Not all nurses start out that way. You can choose to work in a clinic or doctor's office and go back to get your masters to become a NP and never have to be in the hospital cleaning poop. Yes, as a nurse, it's always going to be hands on. But, it's not all cleaning poop and bodily fluids either.

I knew you'd say that. And you're wrong. To be a GOOD NP you need at least some bedside experience. Period. I've worked with plenty of NPs; they are not all equal. Just because some fly by night NP program lets you in without experience doesn't mean you'll be a good NP. And yep. That probably means you have to wade through some poop to get there.

And sure...it's not the whole job. But a surprising number of pharmacists went into pharmacy partially to work in healthcare while avoiding the truly touchy parts of healthcare. So no, many pharmacists wouldn't enjoy crossing over to nursing.

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[mentos]

You need to do more research into nursing before saying that. Not all nurses start out that way. You can choose to work in a clinic or doctor's office and go back to get your masters to become a NP and never have to be in the hospital cleaning poop. Yes, as a nurse, it's always going to be hands on. But, it's not all cleaning poop and bodily fluids either.

Who would you rather have as a provider, the NP who worked in the ICU for 5 years or the NP who worked in a doctor's office for 5 years?

 

[Medicineman23]

CVS knows pounding out scripts for pennies isn’t a long term plan. They got two insurance plans and switching to health hubs as the main setup is their future outlook.

MinuteClinic

www.cvs.com

This is the CVS of the future

This is what it looks like when a drug store chain and a health insurer merge.

www.cnn.com

look at all the services they’re gonna be offering. Basically a doctors office with a NP or PA doing everything so their job market is gonna actually grow (couple thousand health hubs need to hire new prescribers for each location), once cvs switches their stores over to these hubs. Sadly there’s barely any listed services a pharmacist can administer (even if the patient has no insurance) so pharmacist demand will Just slowly even out or even drop. The writing is on the wall, things are just moving quicker now

MinuteClinic

www.cvs.com

they’ll be charging folks $89 for a epipen RX refill(that only PA’s and NP’s can prescribe). Cvs will be known as a health care desination, no longer just a drug chain.

 

[radio frequency]

CVS knows pounding out scripts for pennies isn’t a long term plan. They got two insurance plans and switching to health hubs as the main setup is their future outlook.

MinuteClinic

www.cvs.com

This is the CVS of the future

This is what it looks like when a drug store chain and a health insurer merge.

www.cnn.com

look at all the services they’re gonna be offering. Basically a doctors office with a NP or PA doing everything so their job market is gonna actually grow (couple thousand health hubs need to hire new prescribers for each location), once cvs switches their stores over to these hubs. Sadly there’s barely any listed services a pharmacist can administer (even if the patient has no insurance) so pharmacist demand will Just slowly even out or even drop. The writing is on the wall, things are just moving quicker now

MinuteClinic

www.cvs.com

they’ll be charging folks $89 for a epipen RX refill(that only PA’s and NP’s can prescribe). Cvs will be known as a health care desination, no longer just a drug chain.

Places like Walmart have been doing that for years. It hasn't changed anything. I don't know why this is considered groundbreaking.

 

[Medicineman23]

Places like Walmart have been doing that for years. It hasn't changed anything. I don't know why this is considered groundbreaking.

Did you click the 2nd link I provided with the price list included? Walmart doesn’t offer even 1% of those services. This is more akin to a urgent care with fast food modeling in terms of pricing and convenience.

I hate giving CVS any form of credit, but it’s a great idea they have. Most of the services you would normally have to go to a doctors office to get, but it’s all about accessibility and price these days.

From a MD’s prospective, this is just further pushing the mid level creep.

 

[Sine Cura]

Walmart is bandwagoning the same ideas as CVS but isn't doing anything at scale anytime soon.

 

[radio frequency]

Did you click the 2nd link I provided with the price list included? Walmart doesn’t offer even 1% of those services. This is more akin to a urgent care with fast food modeling in terms of pricing and convenience.

I hate giving CVS any form of credit, but it’s a great idea they have. Most of the services you would normally have to go to a doctors office to get, but it’s all about accessibility and price these days.

From a MD’s prospective, this is just further pushing the mid level creep.

Are they adding an on-site lab? I'm not sure how they will handle this any other way.

 

[Medicineman23]

Are they adding an on-site lab? I'm not sure how they will handle this any other way.

They do have labs they send samples out for (I.e. Hep C tests, HIV confirmation testing), but the majority of the testing is point of care which is done in store, or rapid response like a strep test.

Random thing that caught my eye was $59 for eyelash extension therapy which in the visit notes is just...a script for Latisse? credit to their marketing team for that one lol

but yeah overall, they make money off the insurance claim or cash for the visit, then 90% of folks according to their research will get a prescription which they can fill at the pharmacy in the back. Win/win for them

 

[southpharmindy]

Talked to a nurse that had to remove packing from a patient's ulcer last week; couldn't tell if it was older packing that hadn't been removed before or dead tissue and the smell in the room was unbelievable. If it was coming out they just had to get it. No thanks

The smelling when cleaning out routine trach's? No thanks

Cdif smell and changing diapers for said Cdif patient? And knowing what Cdif smells like? No thanks

Patient who forgot to remove a tampon a month ago? And now it HAS to come out? No thanks

Walking into a room and automatically knowing its a Pseudomonas foot infection? No thanks

My sister has been an RN for 30+ years and they earn every penny they make. Could I do that stuff if I wanted to? Absolutely. But I would much rather work as a pharmacist.

People are getting carried away.

 

[johnpharm01]

....I ask myself that every. single. day.

If you started pharmacy school post 2008, I would be asking that question. Before that, there was a market to match the sales pitch to become a pharmacist. Rapidly escalating salaries, multiple job offers etc. Many folks on this thread are over simplyfying nursing, broad generalizations. Oh and concept of a retail pharmacy as a healthcare destination has been out for awhile and hasn't panned out remember theranos?

 

[johnpharm01]

If you can’t take the heat then get the f out of the kitchen. Accept it or change. No one is forcing you to do that job. It sucks. All of pharmacy sucks and it’s not worth that paycheck.

Love it or leave it? "All" too broad, you would kill for my job. Good hours, competitive pay and benes, great support, fantastic staffing.

 

[WVUPharm2007]

CVS knows pounding out scripts for pennies isn’t a long term plan.

Incorrect. That is literally the long term plan. By owning the PBM, they can set dispensing fees at pennies for not just their pharmacies, but other pharmacies on the retail side while making money on the PBM side. The pharmacy will not make the same margins as before on paper, but it is an important cog in the wheel of squeezing competition. CVS is turning it all into a complex shell game in which they have nearly complete vertical integration of outpatient care and can direct gains/losses to the parts of the business that will maximize the corporation's overall profits.

With the addition of Aetna controlling medical costs, all they need now is a generic drug manufacturer. Just imagine how much they would crush the entire healthcare sector with that. They would control every part of the process from lab to CVS register. Imagine if they could make more expensive generic drugs for pennies. The PBM and pharmacy would still pay the higher price, but who cares. They could undercut any competition by operating at loses in both of those sectors because all the profit is sequestered into the generic drug manufacturer shell.

 

[owlegrad]

I always though generic manufacturing was the obvious play for CVS. It’s mind boggling to me that hasn’t happened yet.

 

[CVS4Life]

What are your store hours? 10 hours Monday-Friday and eight hours Sat & Sun?

Yup

 

[pharmacystudent1011]

Same here. 3 letters. Getting 8 rph hours cut starting June.

 

[baronzb]

Incorrect. That is literally the long term plan. By owning the PBM, they can set dispensing fees at pennies for not just their pharmacies, but other pharmacies on the retail side while making money on the PBM side. The pharmacy will not make the same margins as before on paper, but it is an important cog in the wheel of squeezing competition. CVS is turning it all into a complex shell game in which they have nearly complete vertical integration of outpatient care and can direct gains/losses to the parts of the business that will maximize the corporation's overall profits.

With the addition of Aetna controlling medical costs, all they need now is a generic drug manufacturer. Just imagine how much they would crush the entire healthcare sector with that. They would control every part of the process from lab to CVS register. Imagine if they could make more expensive generic drugs for pennies. The PBM and pharmacy would still pay the higher price, but who cares. They could undercut any competition by operating at loses in both of those sectors because all the profit is sequestered into the generic drug manufacturer shell.

How did CVS beat the anti-trust probe several years ago? I remember reading the FTC report about how CVS needed to be big to bring savings to consumers??

 

[DoctorRx1986]

The profession of pharmacy is ridden with problems including automation, market saturation , surplus , and “reduced job security “. Yes, the company may be reducing operating hours at many pharmacies . However, I believe it is important to keep some perspective - despite all the problems our profession faces , most of us are STILL employed and have been diligently working throughout this pandemic while probably 90% of the American population is working from home, laid off, or has experienced pay cuts . Currently there are nearly 40 million unemployed in this country . Tell me- how many of you guys are unemployed and just “getting by, barely surviving”? Most of us are making a solid income and millions of people in this economic environment would kill to make $58 an hour or whatever you make . In this day and age people would love to make even $15 an hour rather than living on government handouts and economic uncertainty for god knows how long . I am by no means downplaying the very real problems pharmacy faces . That being said we are still faring quite well and are still important /essential enough that we have to get our as*ses out of bed to go to work . Be grateful for what you have because you can lose it all in a moment’s notice and end up like the average joe who is practically destitute at this time . I can give many examples of people who are truly in dire situations . A friend of mine knows a man who was a director of a cruise line making nearly $200k a year and has been working for the company for nearly three decades . Well, to make a long story short, he was recently laid off quite easily . Why ? Many industries are nonessential in society . Pharmacy , no matter what problems it faces, is still absolutely essential to society and that is why we are still somewhat untouchable . Just my 2 cents .

 

[MrBonita]

I been paying taxes for 20 years. I’m so sick of pharmacy I find driving uber and doing uber eats to be fun compared to my pharmacist job. Anything to make money outside of pharmacy is heaven for me. Has anyone tried to go to a doctor and get evaluated for mental insanity and get put on state disability? I’m at the point of trying this.

 

[ValeRx]

I been paying taxes for 20 years. I’m so sick of pharmacy I find driving uber and doing uber eats to be fun compared to my pharmacist job. Anything to make money outside of pharmacy is heaven for me. Has anyone tried to go to a doctor and get evaluated for mental insanity and get put on state disability? I’m at the point of trying this.

I used to drive for Uber several years ago. I'd get off shift from the pharmacy and turn my Uber app on and give a couple rides before turning in for the night. People used to look at me all crazy-like when I told them I was also a pharmacist for my "regular" job. It was pretty fun.

 

[BidingMyTime]

You need to do more research into nursing before saying that. Not all nurses start out that way. You can choose to work in a clinic or doctor's office and go back to get your masters to become a NP and never have to be in the hospital cleaning poop. Yes, as a nurse, it's always going to be hands on. But, it's not all cleaning poop and bodily fluids either.

1) doctor's offices aren't the ones paying $54/hr as someone mentioned. Doctor's offices are probably one of the lowest waged places a nurse can work (nursing homes might pay less, I'm not sure.)

2) NP's are rapidly becoming saturated, so if ones goal is to get a career where they can actually pick their job and not take the first job they find, NP is not it.

I knew you'd say that. And you're wrong. To be a GOOD NP you need at least some bedside experience. Period. I've worked with plenty of NPs; they are not all equal. Just because some fly by night NP program lets you in without experience doesn't mean you'll be a good NP. And yep. That probably means you have to wade through some poop to get there.

We weren't talking about whether or not one would be a "good" NP, we were talking about why pharmacists chose to be pharmacists over nurses. And I would venture a very good percentage of us did so, because we don't like bad smells and nasty stuff. If I weren't a pharmacist, I would not have went for any other job in healthcare, because I really don't dealing with bodily fluids or wastes.

 

[Hels2007]

I always though generic manufacturing was the obvious play for CVS. It’s mind boggling to me that hasn’t happened yet.

The heyday of generic manufacturing is in the past, nowadays there is nothing but trouble there, razor-thin margins and unless you have huge manufacturing capacity in terms of volume and breadth of your portfolio, you ain't gonna make it, for CVS to make it worth their while they would have to buy out one of the big guys, and that probably won't pass the anti-trust regulations.

.And sure...it's not the whole job. But a surprising number of pharmacists went into pharmacy partially to work in healthcare while avoiding the truly touchy parts of healthcare. So no, many pharmacists wouldn't enjoy crossing over to nursing.

My case exactly. I decided I wanted to be in healthcare, but I didn't want to touch sick people.

 

[MrBonita]

You actually made money doing uber? Seems like with all the miles, car expenses, etc you're making like min wage or less.

Sent from my SM-N960U1 using Tapatalk

Most of the pay is tax deductible due to miles and wear and tear on car and insurance. Driving is something I do for fun. So getting paid is heaven

 

[owlegrad]

You actually made money doing uber? Seems like with all the miles, car expenses, etc you're making like min wage or less.

Sent from my SM-N960U1 using Tapatalk

If you have a nice car you can drive under the black label.

 

[ldiot]

Techs can make $2-3/hr more working at McDonalds, I honestly pity them working like slaves and taking so much abuse from customers. What CVS pays them is a damn shame, especially the good ones who really care.

And then you have CVS cutting both pharmacist and tech hours, and just harassing everyone about every metric, while half of customers stuff is expedited. People getting phone calls from corporate and call bursts then show up to the pharmacy and nobody has any idea what the **** is going on, DL telling techs to just press yes to everything at the register and then customers bitch at us when stuff gets filled for 90 days supply and they have to pay $30 instead of $10. People wondering how stuff got filled. CVS saying technical error and deleting 10 scripts every day. Computer making it impossible to order Fluorometholone, among other things, so we get bitched at by the customers and doctor and have to send the script elsewhere because the pharmacy staff doesn't have the authority to order a ****ing $30 eye drop. CVS app lets people fill their Xanax early then we get bitched at when they show up and it was put back on hold by the pharmacist. Sending requests to doctors on Famotidine 20, Metformin ER, losartan, olmesartan, valsartan, because every drug is on backorder, doctors never respond, patients screaming, pharmacist doesn't have time to make 700-1000 phone calls for every pt on these meds when they are 8 pages red.

 

[Farmgurl20]

Techs can make $2-3/hr more working at McDonalds, I honestly pity them working like slaves and taking so much abuse from customers. What CVS pays them is a damn shame, especially the good ones who really care.

And then you have CVS cutting both pharmacist and tech hours, and just harassing everyone about every metric, while half of customers stuff is expedited. People getting phone calls from corporate and call bursts then show up to the pharmacy and nobody has any idea what the **** is going on, DL telling techs to just press yes to everything at the register and then customers bitch at us when stuff gets filled for 90 days supply and they have to pay $30 instead of $10. People wondering how stuff got filled. CVS saying technical error and deleting 10 scripts every day. Computer making it impossible to order Fluorometholone, among other things, so we get bitched at by the customers and doctor and have to send the script elsewhere because the pharmacy staff doesn't have the authority to order a ****ing $30 eye drop. CVS app lets people fill their Xanax early then we get bitched at when they show up and it was put back on hold by the pharmacist. Sending requests to doctors on Famotidine 20, Metformin ER, losartan, olmesartan, valsartan, because every drug is on backorder, doctors never respond, patients screaming, pharmacist doesn't have time to make 700-1000 phone calls for every pt on these meds when they are 8 pages red.

This is so damn accurate!