Houston brothers sent to prison for $13M stolen goods enterprise, ordered to pay restitution to Walgreens and CVS
Two brothers residing in Houston have been sentenced for their roles in large-scale organized retail crime schemes that involved Walgreens and CVS, the United States Department of Justice announced Wednesday.
What’s Going Around? COVID and strep throat hitting kids headed back to school
At Texas Children’s Hospital, doctors said there are currently hospitalized babies with RSV and COVID.While CVS MinuteClinic practitioners say the main viruses driving patients into their clinics are COVID and strep throat.
Flu shots now available at CVS Pharmacy and MinuteClinic nationwide
CVS Health is reminding Americans that it is more important than ever to stay current with vaccinations and other routine health care needs. By getting an annual flu shot, ensuring COVID-19 boosters are up to date, and taking other proactive preventative health measures, individuals and families can help protect themselves against seasonal flu and other illnesses and do their part to help protect the overall health of their community.
Amazon, Walgreens and CVS limit Covid-19 tests per customer amid soaring cases
As the omicron variant spreads throughout the U.S. and Covid-19 cases spike ahead of Christmas, demand for at-home testing kits has risen dramatically. That prompted Amazon, Walgreens and CVS to place limits this week on how many tests each customer can buy.
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CVS to administer COVID-19 vaccines at 74 more pharmacies across Texas: Here’s how to get an appointment
(AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez, File)HOUSTON – CVS Health announced Thursday that it will begin to administer COVID-19 vaccines to eligible populations starting Sunday, March 14, at 74 additional CVS Pharmacy locations across Texas. These additional retail locations bring to 180 total CVS Pharmacy locations administering a COVID-19 vaccine in Texas. Vaccines at participating CVS Pharmacy locations in Texas will be available to individuals meeting state eligibility criteria, as well as K-12 teachers and staff and childcare workers. Patients must register in advance at CVS.com or through the CVS Pharmacy app, and people without online access can contact CVS Customer Service: (800) 746-7287. Vaccines will eventually be available at CVS Pharmacy locations throughout the country subject to product availability, with the capacity to administer 20 to 25 million shots per month.
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Schedule an appointment: CVS adds approximately 15 new COVID-19 vaccination sites to Greater Houston area
HOUSTON – Starting Thursday, CVS Health will begin offering COVID-19 vaccines to those who are eligible (in the 1B Phase) at 47 more select CVS Pharmacies in Texas. Approximately 15 of them will be in the greater Houston area, CVS says. Nearly 58,500 doses of vaccine are being made available for the 47 additional Texas sites through the Federal Retail Pharmacy Program, bringing the total CVS Pharmacy COVID-19 vaccination locations to nearly 100 statewide. AdVaccines are offered on an appointment-only basis at CVS.com or through the CVS Pharmacy app. Bay CityHoustonHuntsvilleJacinto CityKatyLa MarqueLivingstonPasadenaSeabrookTomballAs more supply becomes available through the federal program, the company will expand to additional states while increasing the number of stores offering vaccinations.
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Vaccination efforts increase across Houston area
Another first this Friday, the Michael E. DeBakey V.A. Medical Center in Houston started facilitating a new vaccination method for veterans: first come, first served. “This is really important to us, we are vaccinating America’s heroes,” said associate director of the Michael E. DeBakey Medical Center, Chris Myhaver. The line stretched for miles for the first-come, first-served veteran vaccinations, but Navy Veteran Earl George did not mind. AdIf you are an eligible veteran and want to get vaccinated, the Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center drive-thru vaccination clinic opens at 7:30 a.m. on Saturday.
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CVS Health among pharmacies set to expand access to COVID-19 vaccine in Houston
HOUSTON – If you’re eligible and looking to get the COVID-19 vaccine, you’ll be able to schedule an appointment with CVS Health beginning Thursday. Vaccinations at 70 pharmacy locations in Texas, including an undisclosed number in Houston, will begin the next day on Friday. The scheduling system will open on Feb. 11,” Monica Prinzing with CVS Health Corporate Communications said. Because active stores will change regularly based on vaccine supply, CVS Health will not provide a full list of participating locations,” Prinzing added. H-E-BAd“H-E-B Pharmacies are prepared to receive new allotments of COVID-19 vaccine at any time from the government.
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Memorial Hermann partners with Conroe ISD to vaccinate thousands in Montgomery County
SHENANDOAH, Texas – Memorial Hermann and Conroe ISD are working together to vaccinate nearly 7,000 people in Montgomery County. Their daughter, who lives with them, just had a baby, so Danny and Donna Driscoll wanted the vaccine in a hurry. Memorial Hermann teamed with Conroe ISD to administer about 7,000 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine at the Woodforest Bank Stadium Friday and Saturday. That’s an honor for us to do that through this vaccine clinic,” said Conroe ISD Superintendent Dr. Curtis Null. Dr. Null said they plan to do the second doses of the vaccine at the same site in three weeks.
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Slots filled for Memorial Hermann’s drive-thru vaccine clinic at Conroe ISD stadium
The event is hosted by Memorial Hermann, along with Montgomery County, the City of Shenandoah and Conroe Independent School District. Officials said in a news release that the vaccine supply is limited and appointments will be scheduled on a first-come, first-served basis until the available appointments are full. Memorial Hermann will administer approximately 6,400 COVID-19 vaccines at this clinic. “The speed at which we can move through additional populations will be determined by continued and increased vaccine supply. We appreciate the community’s patience and understanding during this time and pledge to keep things moving just as quickly and efficiently as we possibly can.”For the latest information regarding Memorial Hermann’s COVID-19 vaccine distribution process, go here.
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You can get vaccinated at select CVS stores within the following Houston-area towns
HOUSTON – CVS has announced pharmacies will begin to administer COVID-19 vaccines to eligible populations at 70 CVS Pharmacy locations across Texas Friday, Feb. 12. For CVS Pharmacy locations that will begin to offer COVID-19 vaccinations on Feb. 12, appointments were supposed to become available for booking as early as Feb. 9 as stores receive shipments of the vaccine. Participating pharmacies are in communities throughout the state, including Houston, San Antonio, Abilene, Amarillo, Beaumont, Brownsville, El Paso, Laredo, Lubbock, Midland, Plano, and Waco. As the supply becomes available, the company said it will expand to more locations and offer additional appointments. Patients must register in advance at CVS.com or through the CVS Pharmacy app, and people without online access can contact CVS customer service: (800) 746-7287.
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Biden boosting vaccine allotments, financing for virus costs
Starting next week, 1 million doses will be distributed to some 6,500 pharmacies across the country, the White House said. The administration is also boosting by 500,000 the weekly allocation of vaccines sent directly to states and territories for the coming weeks, up to 10.5 million. It is allowing state and local governments to receive additional federal dollars to cover previously incurred expenses relating to the pandemic. The number of participating pharmacies and the allocation of vaccines are expected to accelerate as drug makers increase production. The Biden administration has sought to increase certainty to state governments on their upcoming allocations to streamline deliveries and prevent stockpiling of second doses for the two-dose regimens.
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Report: Many US nursing home staff decline first COVID shots
The CDC looked at more than 11,000 nursing homes and skilled nursing facilities that had at least one vaccination clinic between the middle of December and the middle of January. Data previously showed that people who work in nursing homes and long-term care facilities get flu vaccines at lower rates than other health-care workers. Surveys suggest that long-term care workers are skeptical the shots work and don't think viruses spread easily from them to the people they care for. The government tasked CVS and Walgreens with administering the shots to long-term care homes in nearly every state. Each vaccine requires two shots a few weeks apart, and CVS and Walgreens say they have wrapped up first-dose clinics in nursing homes.
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'Little old West Virginia' sets pace on vaccine rollout
More shots have gone into people’s arms per capita across West Virginia than in any other state, with at least 7.4% of the population receiving the first of two shots, according to state data. “Little old West Virginia, that was thought of for hundreds of years, you know, as a place where maybe we were backward or dark or dingy,” Justice said last week. Instead, it turns out that “West Virginia has been the diamond in the rough,” Justice said on CBS’ "Face the Nation" on Sunday. The federal partnership involving both companies would have allowed Washington officials to dictate the terms of nursing home vaccinations, said Marty Wright, the head of the West Virginia Health Care Association, which represents health care companies. The governor wants in-person learning to resume at as many schools as possible by Tuesday, long before teachers will have received their second vaccine doses.
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CVS begins vaccinating nursing home residents and workers across Texas
They plan to vaccinate thousands of residents and workers. CVS has set up several dropoff locations to get vaccines to nursing homes faster. “We have selected by geographic need select depot stores, doesn’t mean we would actually administer them here, these are just holding points for the vaccines. So here’s the depot store and around these depot stores will be long-term care facilities so we’re trying to compress time and distance,” adds Fratamico. CVS is also in need of more workers to help in this vaccine administration process that will likely last for several more months.
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California hospitals discuss rationing care as virus surges
Plans for rationing care are not in place yet, but they need to be established because “the worst is yet to come,” said Los Angeles County's health services director, Dr. Christina Ghaly. Until then, four hospitals run by Los Angeles County are weighing what to do if they cannot treat everyone because of a shortage of beds or staffers. Some hospitals have canceled non-essential elective surgeries, such as hip replacements, that might take up beds that could soon be needed for COVID-19 patients. Scientists are working to determine whether the strain spreads more easily, said Moncef Slaoui, the chief science adviser for the U.S. government’s COVID-19 vaccine effort. Bill Lee on Sunday announced new social gathering restrictions while still refusing to implement a mask mandate despite pleas from front-line health care workers.
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CVS Health, Walgreens begin providing COVID-19 vaccines at thousands of hard-hit nursing homes
CVS Health and Walgreens on Friday are beginning to offer COVID-19 vaccinations for residents and staff at those long-term care facilities, making them among the first Americans to receive the shots, CNBC reported. Walgreens said its pharmacists will administer the shots at nursing homes and assisted living facilities in Ohio, Connecticut and Florida. CVS said it will provide them at facilities in Ohio and Connecticut. Both companies will expand to facilities in other states next week. For more, go to CNBC’s full report.
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CVS, Walgreens and HEB pharmacies plan COVID-19 vaccine rollout
HOUSTON – Some of the major pharmacies such as CVS, Walgreens and HEB in Houston plan to have vaccines available to the general public by springtime. Families could be making their way to their local pharmacy for a COVID-19 vaccine by March or early April. HEB has been working on plans for COVID-19 vaccine distributions for months. CVS stated that they plan to have COVID-19 vaccines available to the public by March, as well, at every one of their locations. Once it’s available to the public at CVS, Walgreens or HEB, it will be at no cost to customers.
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EXPLAINER: What to know about COVID-19 vaccination in the US
Dr. Michelle Chester draws the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine into a syringe at Long Island Jewish Medical Center, Monday, Dec. 14, 2020, in the Queens borough of New York. Even with vaccination, you'll still need to take precautions, like wearing a mask and social distancing, health officials say. Once doses are widely available, people should be able to use an existing government website, www.vaccinefinder.org, to find COVID-19 shots. The panel also suggests avoiding getting other vaccinations for two weeks before and after a COVID-19 shot. COVID-19 vaccines can’t be mixed and matched, so if a second dose is needed, providers will be checking to make sure you get the right one.
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Christmas Day 2020: The Houston-area stores open, closed on the holiday
It’s not every day that the Big Man in Red makes a visit, so it’s easy to forget some things in the excitement. Most area grocery stores and retailers will not operate on Christmas Day, but there are a handful of options for the forgetful. Scroll below to see the operating hours for some of the Houston area’s most popular retailers and grocery stores. ALDI: ClosedCostco: ClosedCentral Market: ClosedCVS: 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. (Hours vary by location)Food Town: ClosedH-E-B: ClosedLowe’s: ClosedKroger: ClosedHome Depot: ClosedRandalls: 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.Sam’s Club: ClosedStarbucks: Most locations will open on Christmas. Call ahead for specific hours.
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Local pharmacies prepare for first vaccines
HOUSTON – Local pharmacies were getting prepared to start COVID-19 immunizations. The CDC has partnered with Walgreens and CVS to vaccinate residents of nursing homes and assisted living facilities. When vaccines are available for wider distribution, all CVS pharmacies will have them. “We have 285 pharmacies, we have over 800 people who can give shots and we can give our a flu shot today,” said McClelland. Pharmacies said they have qualified people to give vaccinations and they’ve visited nursing and long-term care facilities in the past to vaccinate patients.
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CVS Health hiring thousands across the U.S.; Here’s how you can get an online job tryout
HOUSTON – CVS Health said this week that it is recruiting qualified candidates to fill 15,000 jobs across the nation. More than 10,000 of the new roles are for full- and part-time licensed pharmacy technicians at CVS Pharmacy locations and will be filled as soon as possible, helping increase support for patients and fellow pharmacy professionals. Working under the direct supervision of a licensed pharmacist, CVS Health pharmacy technicians process prescriptions, dispense medications, provide information to customers or health professionals and perform administrative tasks. They also administer COVID-19 tests at more than 4,000 drive-thru testing sites at select CVS Pharmacy locations across the country. Candidates for these opportunities can apply online and take an online virtual job tryout.
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Feds planning now to get coronavirus shots to nursing homes
Under the voluntary program, trained staff from CVS and Walgreens would deliver the vaccines to each nursing home and administer shots. The nation has 15,000-16,000 nursing homes, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The use of retail chain pharmacies has prompted some concerns, because nursing homes typically deal with specialized pharmacies and not the big drugstores catering to consumers. Mango said the plan would accommodate nursing homes that want to continue to work with specialized pharmacies. HHS Secretary Alex Azar said the program will “provide convenient and free vaccination to residents of nursing homes across America.”
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Hawaii to allow travelers to skip quarantine with virus test
David Ige said Wednesday that starting Oct. 15, travelers arriving from out of state may bypass a 14-day quarantine requirement if they test negative for COVID-19. Travelers will have to take the test within 72 hours before their flight arrives in the islands. Earlier this year Ige planned to start a pre-travel testing program on Aug. 1 only to have to postpone it as COVID-19 cases spiked on the U.S. mainland and in Hawaii. Hawaii leaders are hopeful that pre-travel testing will encourage people to return to a Hawaii in a way that keeps residents safe. “I want to emphasize that this pre-travel testing will allow us to add a greater element of safety for travel into our state,” Ige said at a news conference.
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Judge rejects pharmacy chains' bid to toss opioid suits
(AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez, File)CLEVELAND Lawsuits filed by two Ohio counties against retail pharmacy chains claiming their opioid dispensing practices flooded communities with pain pills and were a a public nuisance can continue, a federal judge in Cleveland has determined. U.S. District Judge Dan Polster rejected the pharmacy chains' motion to dismiss the suits, ruling Thursday that the Ohio law does indeed apply to Lake and Trumbull counties' nuisance claims. Polster is overseeing more than 2,000 lawsuits filed by local governments, tribal authorities and others against companies they blame for fueling an opioid epidemic that has killed 430,000 people since 2000. The two northeast Ohio counties' lawsuits against CVS, Walgreens, Rite Aid, Walmart and Giant Eagle were the first to target retail pharmacy chains as both distributors and dispensers of painkillers. Those claims seek damages from the retail chains as distributors of painkillers but not as dispensers.
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New free rapid coronavirus testing site opening in north Houston
HOUSTON A new rapid coronavirus testing site is opening in north Houston on Friday, and its free. The site is located at the North Shepherd Community Clinic at 5012 North Shepherd Drive. Results will be provided at the clinic and will not require people to wait days to determine whether they have coronavirus. The testing site is provided through a partnership between the Ibn Sina Foundation and CVS Health. A map of other testing sites across the Houston area can be found here.
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Walgreens plans to open full-service doctors’ offices in hundreds of its stores
Walgreens plans to open full-service doctors' offices in hundreds of its stores across the US during the next five years. It's part of a bigger effort by the drugstore chain to become a one-stop shop for health care. Walgreens Boots Alliance is partnering with health care company VillageMD to create the 500 to 700 primary care clinics. Walgreens' clinics will open in at least 30 metro area markets during the next five years and then 20 more markets, said Morry Smulevitz, a Walgreens spokesperson. Each clinic will occupy about 25% of an average Walgreens store, Smulevitz said.
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Arizona governor facing pressure to act as virus cases surge
The Arizona Department of Health Services posted on its website Monday another 1,104 cases of COVID-19 and eight additional deaths, bringing the statewide total number of coronavirus cases to 36,705 and related deaths to 1,194. Doug Ducey to take steps like requiring masks in public to slow a major increase in new coronavirus cases that has made the state a national hot spot. Arizona hospitals were treating a record number of coronavirus patients Tuesday amid a surge of new cases. The state's Health Services Department reported a record number of emergency room visits for the virus as well. #MaskUpAZ.During a news briefing last week where he pushed back on questions about a mask mandate, the governor insisted that the state's hospitals, while filling up, had the capacity to treat any expected surge in virus patients.
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The Galleria, other Houston businesses close to shoppers amid protests in Houston
HOUSTON – The Galleria mall closed Sunday to the public amid protests in Houston, according to a security source at The Galleria. The Galleria, Houston, TexasProfit > People pic.twitter.com/mjR4Uxadhf — Luis M. (@itszLu) May 31, 2020On Saturday night, a video shared online shows looters attempting to break into Forever 21, which has an exterior window display located on Westheimer Road. they really tried to loot forever 21 @ the galleria in Houston pic.twitter.com/zVfKmCrNzu — 𐐪𐑂 (@AINNJEL555) May 31, 2020Another video shared online shows people breaking into a Verizon store in Houston. pic.twitter.com/ztzVMIHbHR — Jared 📷 (@HeWent_2Jared) May 30, 2020NorthPark Center and Galleria Dallas are among other malls closed on Sunday following a night of violent protests in downtown Dallas and Deep Ellum, Dallas Morning News reports. Other Houston businesses taking additional security measures include Madewell in Highland Village and Dior in the River Oaks District.
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Worried about a hydroxychloroquine shortage as coronavirus trials begin? Here’s some advice
HOUSTON – One of the drugs that are showing promise to treat coronavirus is one that many Americans already use every day for other ailments. While this drug could play a role in treating coronavirus patients, there are many people who depend on it beyond the virus. I’m concerned about the price going up and I’m concerned about its availability.”Wednesday, New York started doing hydroxychloroquine trials on coronavirus patients. Advice for people who take hydroxychloroquineThe Arthritis Foundation released a list of suggestions for patients who may be worried about a drug shortage. If you cannot get your hydroxychloroquine prescription filled, you can report it to the FDA at drugshortages@fda.hhs.govResearchers are also working on a possible Coronavirus vaccine.