CVS Pharmacy prepares for Tropical Storm Elsa along Florida coast

In order to keep patients and employees safe, CVS Health is actively preparing for Tropical Storm Elsa’s impending landfall along the Florida coast.

CVS Pharmacy locations comply with all local evacuation orders and will re-open any closed stores as soon as it is safe to do so. If a store is forced to close for two or more days, the pharmacy’s phone lines will be rerouted to a nearby open location so patients may continue to access their prescriptions. CVS Pharmacy encourages customers who have scheduled a COVID-19 vaccination or a COVID-19 test at any of its stores in the area to call the store to confirm availability.

As Tropical Storm Elsa approaches the coast of Florida, CVS Pharmacy has been reaching out to its patients via text message and email where possible to remind them to refill prescriptions. In addition, through CVS Caremark, CVS Health’s pharmacy benefit manager, the company has activated a process to provide one-time emergency refills of a 10-day supply of medication for plan members in impacted areas. Patients within the emergency area taking specialty medications filled by CVS Specialty will be contacted to discuss alternate delivery arrangements, if needed. T

Through its Aetna Business Unit,  clinical response teams have expanded their engagement with Medicare and Commercial members in potentially impacted counties in Florida to ensure member safety, access to emergency services and continuity of care.

CVS Health also offers the following tips for assuring prescription needs are met for those potentially impacted by Tropical Storm Elsa:

• Follow local evacuation orders. Get to a safe location first and refill your medications at the nearest pharmacy. This allows you to avoid potentially long lines at your local pharmacy, and you won’t need to needlessly delay your evacuation.

• Take a waterproof bag with your current medication — even if the bottle is empty. The information on the prescription label will help pharmacy staff with refill requests. Heat, humidity and sunlight can degrade the effectiveness of medicine, so try to protect it from extreme weather conditions.

• Keep a written record of your current prescriptions in your valuable paper files. If you are taking several prescription drugs, it’s an especially good idea to keep a record of your current dosage and doctor’s contact information.