By Cassidy Whitaker, Contributing Writer
In a continued effort to transform from simply a drug and convenient store to a legitimate health care provider, CVS has completely discontinued the sales of all tobacco products. This decision was made about seven months ago with October in mind as the goal date of the cessation; however, CVS has decided to begin taking tobacco products off of their shelves now, about a month earlier than planned.
The company was formerly known as CVS Caremark, however, now stands tall and proud as CVS Health. The theme of this transformative campaign headlines CVS Health’s website; it reads, “Our name has changed, but our
the purpose remains the same: helping people on their path to better health.”
More shocking than the sole fact that they stopped the sales of products created by one of the largest and most successful industries in the world, CVS will be losing 2 billion dollars per year in revenue. However, although that seems like an extreme blow to their profits, according to the official CVS Health website, they recorded 126.7 billion dollars generated during the previous fiscal year. So, that calculates to it only taking the company less than six days to make 2 billion dollars. In addition, according to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, the U.S. will spend over 3 trillion dollars on health care just this year. So overall, CVS does not have any reason to be greatly concerned about their future sales.
Other convenient and grocery stores such as Walgreens, Rite Aid, and Walmart have been encouraged by individual state officials and public health groups to cease tobacco sales also, but have refused to do so thus
far. The competing companies seem to be waiting to learn of the severity, if any, of the hit in sales CVS will take to determine if ceasing tobacco sales is the best decision business-wise.
CVS’ goal is simple: to become strictly a health care provider. So, the halt in sales of tobacco products, especially cigarettes, is simply paving the path to their end goal of complete health betterment.
With this goal in mind, CVS Health has also begun the process of creating in-store “retail clinics” called “MinuteClinics.” These were created with the thought in mind that people should have a place to go where they can receive basic medical care such as immunizations, basic treatments for minor injuries and sicknesses, and some simple diagnostic procedures
such as blood pressure testing and temperature readings. These clinics strive to provide these services at reasonable costs, during hours that reflect the operation of a hospital rather than a doctor’s office, and without patients having to wait for long periods of time.
Over 900 “MinuteClinics” have opened up all over the country within CVS’ 7,600 total stores, with expansion to occur over the coming years. Retail clinics at CVS and other convenient and grocery stores have reported millions of patient visits within the past few years. These reported numbers are small compared to the number of visits doctor’s offices and hospitals receive yearly, however, the prospect of growth and success for retail clinics is in sight due to a shortage of primary-care doctors across the country according to the Health Resources and Services Administration and of course, the ever-present demand for good health care.
“I do think it’s [CVS’ discontinuation of the sales of tobacco products] a great idea, however, unfortunately, I don’t think that it will stop smokers because there are other places for them to buy their tobacco. However, I do think that it promotes CVS, from a medical standpoint, as a place to help people, especially through their MinuteClinics. So, by not selling tobacco products, they are promoting the idea of wellness, which is great for our overall society,” says sophomore biology major Ashley Manning, who is studying to become a pediatric physical therapist.
Many speculated that a large majority of the estimated 42.1 million smokers [estimated by the CDC]across the U.S. would be greatly angered by CVS’ cessation of tobacco products, however that hypothesis happened to be quite untrue. The reaction to CVS’ initial announcement to discontinue the sales of tobacco products surprisingly received a great amount of positive feedback, proving that most smokers truly do want to quit. CVS’ plan to get the U.S. on the road to better health has already made a successful impact, while the prospect of expansion and growing success is in sight.
