CVS Health to Provide Bonuses, Benefits, Hire 50,000 in Response to COVID-19 Pandemic

CVS Health is awarding bonuses to employees who are required to be at company facilities to assist patients and customers during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, ranging from $150 to $500. The funds will be awarded to pharmacists and other health care professionals on the frontlines, including store associates and managers, according to a company press release.

In addition, CVS intends to immediately fill approximately 50,000 full-time, part-time, and temporary roles across the country. These roles include store associates, home delivery drivers, distribution center employees, and member/customer service professionals. The company will use a technology-enabled hiring process, including virtual job fairs, interviews, and job tryouts to fill the roles.

CVS employees can also benefit from a new offering that helps employees with both child and elder/adult dependent care needs, with up to 25 fully covered days of backup care with the help of the Bright Horizons network. This benefit will begin in early April for both full- and part-time employees.

Effective March 22, CVS Health made 24 hours of paid sick leave available to part-time employees for the duration of the COVID-19 pandemic. This is complementary to the 14-day paid leave the company has provided for any employee who tests positive for COVID-19 or who needs to be quarantined as a result of potential exposure.

CVS Health said it has implemented new protocols to continue to combat the pandemic and to protect the health of their employees.

“CVS put a protocol in place that we have to clean all customer facing property, such as counters, pin pads, and signature screens, once every hour or more often as needed,” said Kevin Dunn, PharmD, pharmacy manager at CVS in an interview with Pharmacy Times®. “Cleaning products were shipped to each store as well as face masks, gloves, and hand sanitizer for the teams.”

Further, Dunn explained how patient outreach services have adjusted, as CVS is now offering free 1-2 day delivery on prescriptions to let people stay home instead of coming in to pick up.

“Most insurance companies are also allowing for early fill overrides so patients can get all their medications at once and not have to come back out again,” Dunn added.

REFERENCE

CVS Health to provide bonuses, add benefits, and hire 50,000 in response to pandemic [news release]. Woonsocket, RI; PR Newswire: March 23, 2020. https://prnmedia.prnewswire.com/news-releases/cvs-health-to-provide-bonuses-add-benefits-and-hire-50-000-in-response-to-pandemic-301027965.html. Accessed March 25, 2020.