CVS Health plans to close choose pharmacies inside Target stores early this 12 months, an organization spokesperson mentioned Thursday, as retail pharmacy chains in the U.S. battle to increase income.
The closures will start in February and end by the finish of April, the spokesperson mentioned in a press release. She added that staff affected by the closures will likely be provided comparable roles inside CVS, and prescriptions will likely be transferred to a close-by CVS pharmacy earlier than a location closes.
The spokesperson didn’t disclose what number of stores can be shuttered, however a report from The Wall Street Journal on Thursday mentioned CVS would close “dozens” of places.
CVS operates 9,000 pharmacy places nationwide. The firm has a pharmacy in about 1,800 of Target’s 1,956 stores in the U.S., in accordance to a Target spokesperson.
The Target spokesperson declined to touch upon the closures or share plans for the closed CVS places.
The resolution to shutter the stores is a part of CVS’ effort to cut back its retail footprint “based on our evaluation of changes in population, consumer buying patterns and future health needs,” the CVS spokesperson mentioned.
In 2021, CVS mentioned it might close about 900 stores, which is about 10% of its U.S. places, between 2022 and 2024, as the firm pushes to rework itself from a significant drugstore chain into a big health-care firm.
CVS has deepened that push over the previous 12 months with its almost $eight billion acquisition of health-care supplier Signify Health and $10.6 billion deal to purchase Oak Street Health, which operates main care clinics for seniors.
But the firm additionally launched a cost-cutting program final 12 months as a part of that costly push into well being care, with plans to lay off 5,000 staff.
The closures additionally come after pharmacy employees from CVS and different drugstore chains walked out in the fall to protest what they name harsh working situations that put each staff and sufferers in danger. CVS has advised CNBC that the firm is partaking with employees to straight deal with any considerations they could have.
— CNBC’s Melissa Repko contributed to this report.
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