DEERFIELD, Ill., August 30, 2019 - Walgreens is taking proactive measures to assist customers, team members and communities in the projected path of Hurricane Dorian, and is preparing to fully support impacted regions in the storm’s aftermath. The company is taking the following steps:
- Prescription Drug Preparedness: In advance of the storm, Walgreens is underscoring the importance of prescription preparedness for its pharmacy patients in areas that may be impacted. Walgreens suggests patients store any current medications in a waterproof bag – even if the container is empty. The information on prescription labels can help pharmacy staff with refill requests. Heat, humidity and sunlight can degrade the effectiveness of medicine and therefore it is important to protect prescriptions from extreme weather conditions.
Patients can also use the Walgreens mobile app to refill prescriptions for pick up at a nearby Walgreens pharmacy.
- Walgreens Store Updates: The store locator feature on Walgreens.com and the Walgreens mobile app can help anyone find the nearest Walgreens and also to check the latest store status. Patients can also contact pharmacy staff 24/7 through Pharmacy Chat available on Walgreens.com and the mobile app. Customers can also call 1-800-WALGREENS for information.
- Customer Support: Walgreens is proactively staging temporary mobile pharmacies near the region that can be deployed, if necessary, to its drugstores that may be damaged or unable to reopen in a timely manner. Most of Walgreens Florida stores are equipped with backup power generators and the company is staging additional emergency power generators that can be deployed to its stores in areas where there is a loss of power.
- Relief and Recovery: As always, the company will be evaluating its philanthropic response following the storm including preparing to donate needed items to local emergency shelters.
“Walgreens is fully mobilizing to support the health and wellness needs of our customers and communities that may be impacted by Hurricane Dorian. We urge our patients and customers to follow evacuation orders and ensure they are in a safe location first and then refill medications at the nearest pharmacy. Walgreens has approximately 9,500 locations nationwide that are able to access patient’s records,” said Lisa Badgley, senior vice president of pharmacy and retail operations, Walgreens. “We have a dedicated team in our Emergency Operations Center working to ensure our team members in the impacted areas remain safe. In the event we need to temporarily close stores, we are prepared to rapidly restore operations in order to best serve our patients and communities.”
About Walgreens
Walgreens (walgreens.com), one of the nation's largest drugstore chains, is included in the Retail Pharmacy USA Division of Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (NASDAQ: WBA), the first global pharmacy-led, health and wellbeing enterprise. Approximately 8 million customers interact with Walgreens in stores and online each day, using the most convenient, multichannel access to consumer goods and services and trusted, cost-effective pharmacy, health and wellness services and advice. As of August 31, 2018, Walgreens operates 9,560 drugstores with a presence in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, along with its omnichannel business, Walgreens.com. Approximately 400 Walgreens stores offer Healthcare Clinic or other provider retail clinic services.
Phil Caruso
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