Here's something I think a lot of folks don't yet understand, but 16 states' worth of CVSes refusing to give out Covid shots *is* actually preventing people from accessing them. They are the biggest pharmacy chain in the country and they own Aetna insurance, often forcing those clients to use CVS.
It's time to BOYCOTT CVS, people! 👊🇺🇲 🚫💵
Really? So I have been using CVS but I could use Walgreens and now Walgreen's has been bought out.
😡...😡..🤮
TIME TO CALL THE PRESSES...GET ALL THE NETWORKS ON IT OR WE WILL DIE OF THE NEXT VIRUS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
So now I won't set foot in a CVS or a Walgreens. Added to my list, which already includes Chick-Fil-A and Jimmy John's.
And once again: no consequences for RFK for lying to get the job.
When I logged onto my CVS site yesterday...no covid shots listed. Today, covid shots made it onto the list of shots to sign up for. I am due in late Oct., but pondering if I have to move that up in case other crazy shit hits the fan. You should not have to play roulette when getting a shot.
Yeah, get it now while they still have them. I was able to schedule an appointment as early as September 5th in NH!
if you have not had a covid shot within the last 2 months - go ahead and get one now while they are still available
Thanks
CVS holds off on offering COVID-19 vaccines in 16 states, including Pennsylvania | 6abc.com share.google/hJ87VbHxjY50...
And if that many people can’t get vaccines, we’ll all be sicker—even those who manage to get it. Idiocy. Intentional harm.
CA needs to stop them from entering. Cancel all flights originating in or connecting in these States.
CVS also owns their own PBM (pharmacy benefits manager) which means they mediate the prescription benefits for some other insurance companies and gov't programs, and decides how much other pharmacies can be reimbursed for specific medications.
Yes, this is a vertical monopoly. And, because their PBM reimburses, surprise!, CVS at a higher rate than it does other pharmacies, it's working on the horizontal, too. In many places already they're the only ones left, and they're doing MAGA's bidding.
PBMs and pharmacies owning insurance companies (and other tendancies toward siloization in the US healthcare system) are also why we increasingly see primary care offices ceasing to offer things like vaccines and bloodwork. Meaning your Dr will literally tell you to go to a pharmacy for a shot...
Meanwhile, Walgreens in 16 states (some overlap, not all) also refusing to vaccinate. So many communities have these places as their only two options.
This is the latest on what states are blocked, (though fwiw, I can't access an appointment in PA at Walgreens either, at least in the Philly area) bsky.app/profile/luck...
This is what happens in PA when you check that you have a high-risk condition. No option to submit or override with an Rx.
Can't even select anything on the Walgreens site. They say explicitly they're waiting for the CDC meeting, (the one run by antivaxxers who've said they plan to postpone said meeting indefinitely)
I’ve also been trying to schedule in that area. I’m over 65 but it sends me to NJ. I also contacted the Bucks County Health Department and they are not giving any covid vaccines at all. They are usually a good option for people with no insurance for free vaccines.
I think the MontCo office has some that are not the new variant, but better than nothing. My kids' Dr also offered us the old one for them.
I’ll go to NJ if I have to but my 32 year old daughter is trying to get it since she works with the public.
I have MI insurance but live in NC. I am not 65. Should I just drive to another state if my insurance company has approved the vaccine? This is so stupid.
Walgreens is being bought out and will be gone in a few years. www.fiercehealthcare.com/finance/syca...
Does not every state have a Walmart pharmacy???
Yes and there are those of us under specific insurance companies that we can’t switch pharmacies if this happens being under disability. And now millions of people will die from Covid because a violent man wants death.
Is this "just business", or is it something even more problematic? Or is even needing to ask, just a form of denial?
Another thing people may not be aware of is that having huge swaths of unvaccinated areas in our country is a public health threat all its own. Hard to eradicate a pandemic when you have open breeding grounds for mutations to spread…
Walgreens is still giving the old Covid (2024/25) vaccine. Something is better than nothing.
bsky.app/profile/luck...
They are the most expensive pharmacy chain in the USA
Because they can be
Doesn’t make sense that an insurance company would support this as their patients will cost them more money when they get sick.
And yet, they also get the money for the meds, so
The Aetna/CVS merger should have never been allowed to go through. It's healthcare hostage.
Agreed. And now they're buying up doctors' practices too 🫠
That's even scarier.
Omg that makes sense. I wondered why CVS customer service was so awful. You can't even reach a pharmacist by phone anymore. Being owned by an insurance company explains their indifference to customer satisfaction.
It's unfortunate because the staff and pharmacy in my town are so helpful and kind. Sucks when good people have to work under these assholes 😡
Ditto!
I can’t get blood pressure refills until the day I’m out of pills. If I’m away or working and the pharmacy is closed before I can get there I can’t get medicine. I’ve called and it’s not my insurance it’s the pharmacy.
Helping keeping America sick !!
😡😡
I'm one of those! NJ.
You can (for now) check with your local health department. They may be able to accommodate you, often for a reduced price based on your income if your insurance won't cover it.
I tried Bucks County Health Department in PA and they are not giving any covid vaccines
You may be able to get more information on where to get a vaccine by calling 1-877-PA-HEALTH during normal business hours. This is the number listed on their website, which doesn't look to have been updated for a while. www.pa.gov/agencies/hea...
Thanks!
Preventing access to healthcare ( either fiscally or logistically) is practicing medicine without a license.
CVS = health and Medicare fraud, patient privacy violations, prescription errors, financial restatements, deceptive business practices, pharmaceutical kickbacks, and involvement in a political corruption case, resulting in hundreds of millions in legal settlements. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CVS_Hea...
If they have the shots available, they should give them to those people that want them. Another company bending the knee this is absolutely insane.
Appears that Louisiana pharmacies aren’t allowing Covid vaccines if you’re under 65. Regardless of medical diagnoses.
Per @luckytran.com, Louisiana is requiring a prescription. Thanks for the information Dr.
I got mine at Walgreens.
Lucky you. Not available in many states.
Now ask how much CVS charges for alternatives to the vaccine like Paxlovid. It ain't cheap and CVS / Aetna has a big profit margin based on people contracting Covid then buying something to make them feel better while they are sick.
That refusal is temporary though, is it not? Waiting until the fed recommendations are officially adopted? I don't know why they're waiting. I can only assume there are state regulations that stop them from distributing meds that are not federally approved. Correct me if you have more info.
I don't know the specifics behind why either, though that reasoning makes sense-- being reported as "regulatory uncertainty". It is temporary of sorts, because it is pending a CDC meeting that the antivaxxers now in charge have said they want to "postpone indefinitely" so 🤷🏻
Whether intentional or not, there is needless uncertainty and anxiety around this year's rollout. The uncertainty reminds me of the initial rollout of the first available vaccines. We don't need this. This does not help. I hope it ends soon.
cvs's website is also just incredibly bad -- i thought they were refusing to dispense shots in my area based on updated cdc recommendations, turns out when i called them it's because they're waiting on this year's covid shot shipment and i just need to call back in mid-september lol
I have an appt at CVS for my flu, RSV and Covid shots on the 4th. 🤞🏻🤞🏻
Thank you for the info.
Update: I was just able to schedule a flu and Covid for two weeks from now. It could be my age? I’m 72. But I didn’t have any problems. CVS in Midlands of SC. I hope others are able to do the same.
Fortunately CVS is still serving SC. (Walgreens isn't.) The chaos is still making it harder than it should be! Hoping everything goes through for you in two weeks! 🤞🏼
Thank you! I hope those who are able to you will get what they need. They may be able to go to another state? But I don’t know how that works.
Hi! I'm 35 and from NH. If I claimed I didn't have any "at risk" health factors, I wouldn't be able to get the vaccine. HOWEVER, one of those "at risk" health factors lists "mental disorders," which I would say ADHD and anxiety are mental health disorders. I take meds and go to therapy...
So I was able to schedule an appointment. Their website didn't even ask for proof of the disorder, but I DO have a prescription at that specific CVS 🤷♀️ I'll see if CVS asks for proof or if the gov'ment hunts me down, I guess.
I’m going to make an appointment soon to get my flu shot and will try to add Covid. This will be in a few weeks. I’ll let you know what happens! I’m in South Carolina, so roll the dice.
CVS has fkd themselves several times a long time ago —and continue to. (AND Walgreens privatized so 🖕🏼 them. CVS no longer ACA plans but offering a BS excuse — so they’re all falling in line. @AETNA Doesn’t give AF ABOUT THE PEOPLE THEY CLAIMED TO — AND NEITHER DOES CVS.
They turned me down and I have infection induced asthma and they filled my albuterol inhaler prescriptions!
Are they RED states?
They are states where lots of people of all political affiliations ate going to die from this. (But if you must, also no-- there is a mix. Unclear what their criteria is. Risk of being sued, one assumes.)
Amazing.
New York is requiring prescriptions, and we're a very blue state. There are a lot of people trapped in red states who shouldn't be abandoned either.
I’m in New Hampshire. I’m going to try to find one.
Nothing available until the middle of September in a nearby STATE?
I went on CVS online to schedule my next COVID vaccine. To my dismay I received a message telling me I cannot have one due to state restrictions. I live in FL. I am over 65 and have had the COVID vaccine/booster since the vaccines were introduced. 😡
Call your PCP and ask him/her to prescribe the shot for you. They certainly can, easily, & this could bypass the bs “restrictions” Good grief! that Death Satan really wants people to die 💥
i would really recommend calling the pharmacy, because they may be waiting on another shipment and the message is overly vague on that front
That’s horrible! I’m so sorry! I have an appointment at our CVS for next week, I’m 64. I hope I am able to get the shot. In California.
🤞🏼🤞🏼
bsky.app/profile/luck...
Whatever happened to antitrust laws?
Whatever happened to laws 💀
Lawlessness is the name of the game now. And we the people are the victims with, it seems, no one to stop it.
CVS holds off on offering COVID-19 vaccines in 16 states, including Pennsylvania | 6abc.com share.google/IXrDMMY3699N...
And in the somewhat isolated area I live all we have is CVS.🤬
This is something that should get more publicity and hopefully result in more organized boycotts. May result in 20-30 minute additional drive, but results matter.
Yes I have Aetna and CVS
It starts with Covid vaccines, but will quickly move on to other vaccines, like measles. The bending of the knee of big pharma is complete, the money has changed hands, and the Eugenics of America is just around the corner with the next outbreak.
😔
Pretty clear conspiracy there. Bending the corporate knee to Washington.
Vaccines are cheaper than hospital visits.
But CVS makes money on the meds too
I used to get my shots at my primary physicians office. Now they tell me insurance won’t cover them for any shots. That I have to make an appointment with CVS! This should be front page news in MAGA States!
Same with me when I tried to get my guardasil shot a while back. So ridiculous.
Can I recommend planned parenthood? People that can’t get them at CVS should contact PP and see if they can get them there.
Do they offer vaccines outside of Gardasil?
That’s something you can ask your local clinic.
But yes, they do have Covid vaccines at planned parenthood clinics. If you had read my comment that would’ve answered your question already.
👍 yes, and a great day to you as well!
Only in 3 of the 16 is there a complete stop. In the other 13 to get the vaccination you need a prescription from a doctor. The 3 states where they will not administer it with or without prescription are Massachusetts, Nevada, New Mexico.
Yes I have seen that as the announcement/plan but right now the systems here in PA and at least several other listed states are not allowing for making any Covid vax appointments. People calling and getting the same answer. Maybe they will update but for now inaccessible is inaccessible.
(not to mention folks thay don't have access to insurance and/or a pcp)
Do you actually expect me to believe that not being able to get a shot is preventing me from getting a shot? Big, if true!
Well you could just go somewhere else to get it, like outer space!! 🙃
I've given up on space. It is the domain of the rich and I recommend they all get on the new Starship and leave immediately. (I was being sarcastic. Your argument was so logical that I can't possibly understand other people's train of thought.)
It's sad they ruined space, space used to be so fun.
The two Costco's I go to are both out of stock.
How ‘bout we actually make 100% sure THAT’s the real reason before we start lobbing bombs. It’s literally been ONE F’ING DAY since distribution was authorized by the FDA, shit-stirrer.
RFK Jr is a quack! A method of improving the human race, eugenics was increasingly discredited as unscientific & racially biased especially after the adoption of its doctrines by the Nazis in order to justify their treatment of Jews, disabled people, & other minority groups.