CVS Pharmacy Reviews

Anyhow, to get down to my recent issue, we also were notified many months ago that we need to switch to 90-day scripts for all maintenance medications, and that they would have to be filled through CVS or Caremark. The problem that we are having is that my husband is taking an antidepressant for anxiety which has worked well ever since the doctor prescribed it, and we were getting it at our local pharmacy (not CVS). Now that we have had to use their pharmacy (CVS or Caremark mail order) in order to receive coverage, my husband is experiencing all of his old symptoms again. It's as if he weren't on any medication at all.

I have asked my husband multiple times if he is indeed taking the medication and he says yes, as prescribed. The medication is generic as the medication from our local pharmacy. I decided to pursue a search to see if anyone else has had this experience, and if anyone has checked into this. I would love to have this medication tested to see if it is indeed the equivalent of what is prescribed. I also understand that some people can gradually have a need for an increased dose, and that is not totally out of my thoughts and reasoning. However, the fact stands that the loss of effect seemed to begin to dissipate when the medication was switched from our local pharmacy to CVS or Caremark mail order.

Has anyone else experienced this as well? We weren't given a choice as to our pharmaceutical coverage provider, through my husband's employer, nor were we given an option to opt out of pharmaceutical insurance alone. We are charged X amount, per pay period, for healthcare or pharmacy bundle. It just seems a little sideways to sell pharmaceutical insurance plus limit the customer to benefits only when purchased through their private pharmacy. I mean, who do you go to for support in a situation like this?

When I called, I told them I did not need the med and that I had not elected to have the ** sent automatically; which when I checked it online, they did not dispute this. Their answer was a tough, "Your prescription was on file and so was your Visa number, and we used it." They said there was "no way you can get your money back; and if you refuse to accept the package when it reaches your mail box, you will still be billed for it." Where do these people get off sending me unwanted and unneeded medication and charging it to my card?

I also told all three of them if I was a drug user I could go to the Health Dept and get them for free and not have to answer any questions. I was being treated as if I was going to head to the closet alley and shoot up. I have talked to CVS years ago on this same subject. It is not a CVS policy to ask any questions. It is left up to each store. All I ask is that they post a small sign. Then I could be prepared for the 3rd degree or I could go to Wall greens.

Unfortunately, I do not qualify for medical assistance in this state so I pay cash price for my prescription. I noticed that if I bought a large quantity, the price was less (not by much though). I also noticed that one time I would get a quantity of 10 filled and the price would be different than the price for 10 the last time. Unfortunately, I didn't keep records of what I was paying.

In this state, if you pay a large percentage of your pay for medical expenses, they may be able to help with a type of medical assistance, so I asked CVS to print out a report of the medication I've received and how much it cost. I began reviewing it and was astonished by the results. Sometimes I can go in and pay $77.67 for 10 pills and others, $99.23 for 10 pills. I ordered 12 pills today and when I went to pick them up, I brought the printout to compare the prices right in front of them. They charged me $97.76.

So I asked her why a majority of the time I receive 10 pills it costs me $77.67 making each pill $7.76 a piece. But when I ordered two extra, the bill was $20 extra, making the extra pills $10 a piece. I asked her where the logic was in this. I was told the prices are preset in the computer and she could do nothing about it. She was a mere associate and didn't even offer to get the manager or suggest someone I could talk to about my issue. They are acting like my drug dealers in my past, making up inflated prices because of my need for the "drug".

The pharmacy manager, Debbie **, said that the computer system was supposed to be fixed not to charge the tax, but CVS refuses to refund the tax they charged me. She also initially denied that there was any tax in the amount I was charged. She then said that the tax used to show on the receipt separately but the computer system was changed so it did not show. Other pharmacies in my area don't charge tax on prescription drugs when you have insurance. I calculated that CVS has cost me approximately $150 in the last three years. I will never use CVS again--either to shop there or get a prescription filled.

Not only did I take medication that was not prescribed to me, but I was also provided someone else's personal medical information. This is not the first time that this pharmacy has provided me with the wrong prescription. Last year, I ordered ** and I was provided vaginal cream with the same patient name.

- As soon as I got home, I Googled all the pharmacies in my area and called them to share the above experience. None of them has the same policy as CVS and assured me that my patronage would be more than welcome!

The only economic damage is spending almost 40 minutes on my cell phone (and still not being able to resolve anything). How can I quantify the frustration and the humiliation I've felt when a check for only $18 was declined while I had money in the bank to cover it? Certainly that was a shock to both my physical and emotional being!

This is clearly a neglect of "duty of care" and not acceptable. As a consumer we are entitled to receive the proper dosages necessary to aid in health management, and to think that CVS could be so careless (the pharmacist that had been fulfilling it throughout the 4 1/2 months told me that she failed to check the system which does indicate that it's a 14 day supply because she had been "trained" in her past it was 30 days) to follow standard practices, check the system for accurate information etc-especially when this was for a newborn baby! I have been contacted by the risk management department in RI, but I'm also disappointed by the rude and inconsiderate way in which I've been treated by the individual assigned to my case. I refuse to be bullied and I will continue to advocate for my son in this situation.

Ten minutes later the head of the pharmacy, Ann, called and said there is no way it could be short. It is filled by a robot that is 99.9% accurate and I have enough ** to get me through to my next order. So, no apology nothing. My husband called the police and told them the story thinking its a controlled substance and they said we can come down and fill out a report and they will keep it on file, but that's about it. This just seems like a haphazard way to treat drugs that could be sold on the street. Don't they have a record of what came in or security cameras?

I just walked in the store and I did not do anything to her for her to treat me the way she did. She must have been angry already about something else and took her anger out on me. It seems that every time I walk in the pharmacy, I witness Maxine treating a customer with a very disrespectful attitude. I have come back to the store on several occasions since January 28th to fill prescriptions and also to shop.

I came in the store on February 28th and the pharmacy continuously called me to tell me that my prescription was ready to be picked up. I came in the store and once she noticed it was me, she and Jodyanne began to talk about me right in front of me and other customers. Then Jodyanne tells me that I don't have any prescriptions to pick up. I told her that I just spoke to her about an hour ago and she told me to come in and pick up my prescriptions and that it will be ready. Now, they both acted as if they had no idea of what I was talking about. After going back and forth for a few minutes, she finally filled my prescription.

I came in the store today, March 9th, to pick up a prescription. I just left from my doctor's office and walked in the store, waited in line, and as soon as I get to the counter, Maxine calls Jodyanne and tells her that she doesn't want to deal with me. She took the other customer while she takes me. Maxine walks away and Jodyanne comes over. I gave her my prescription and she looks at it, types something in the computer, and then tells me that she is not going to fill my prescription. Jodyanne says that it was in and it would take fifteen minutes to fill it, if she wanted to. I told her to call her manager. Sam, the manager, came and I told him what happened. He said that he can't make her fill my prescription and advised me to go to another pharmacy.

From that point, I told them all that I would report them and I hope that they get fired for the way they treat their customers. They should be more professional than that.

I have really bad high blood pressure. My heart is enlarged and I have other problems with my heart that are being tested now and they have caused me emotional, physical and mental stress that can cause further damage to my heart. My pressure is very elevated and I may have to be hospitalized if I cannot get it stabilized.

Also to buy a tube of toothpaste in this store, you have to call a clerk (of which there are very few at a busy time) to unlock a cabinet. I will take my prescriptions to another pharmacy. This store on York Road is popular since it is in walking distance of Loyola University. But as a faculty member at the University, I will urge fellow faculty and students not to use this pharmacy. I know that with 4100 stores, you probably don't care about customer complaints unless they will involve lawsuits. I just want to mention this anyway.

My doctor faxed in the prescription, which they then lost and so I had to call him to do it the second time. And then they only give me half. When I called about it, I was told Jeremy (who filled it) wouldn't be in until later in the week and I should try calling then. I would think there would be more concern, since they made a bill deal about seeing my ID before they would even fill it because it is a controlled substance.

When I saw all three, I called the pharmacy and discovered the above mentioned information. Then I called my mother's doctor to be told that the doctor had over written the prescription the nurse practicing doctor had written and had change the blood pressure medicine from ** to **. My mother was only to take the **.

Then my mother called CVS and at first was told she would not be getting a refund. Then she asked to speak to someone in charge and was told she would get a refund, but it had to be today. On her way to work, my mother stopped by at CVS, and then was told no refund without a receipt. She came back home and risking being late for work just to look for a receipt. She could not find out, so I told her to go on to work and I would go and take care of it.

At first I was told no refund. I stressed to them that she did not steal the medicine, they know she purchased it and I know for a fact the transaction is in their computer system, and that they need to pull it up Then a manager was called. She got the prescription codes and cost from the pharmacist and went into her office to look it up. She returned a few minutes later with the verification. The pharmacist then processed the refund and I was given the $80 plus some change back. I was an Eckerd's customer and CVS inherited me. More and more I have become displeased with CVS's customer service. There are other recent complaints I could also tell about here, but for time sake I will stop now.

I called in for a refill of ** last week on January 31, 2011 at 8:30AM and was immediately instructed by the automated clerk that I had no refills left and they would be calling the doctor for a new script. I called back early in the afternoon to see if it was ready for pickup and was told it was not. I went to CVS in person later that afternoon hoping for a better result. After waiting in line for 40 minutes, I was told the computers were down and that they could not process my new insurance at that time. I called again on Tuesday morning (2/1/11) to check on the status and was told it was still not ready due to a prior authorization being required by my new insurance company (UHC) and that the paperwork was faxed to my doctor's office. I then phoned my doctor and was informed that they had not received a fax. I called the pharmacy back and asked them to resend the fax and they assured me they would. As of noon, my doctor had still not received it and I again, asked CVS to resend and even gave them the fax number.

As of this time, I was out of my medicine completely and needed to get it as soon as possible. Due to an inclement weather forecast, I needed to get the medicine immediately. At 3:30 Tuesday afternoon, I went to CVS with the hopes that it would be ready by then. After waiting in line for 30 minutes, I was informed that it was still not ready, due to the doctor not replying to the requests. They printed me a copy of the form that was faxed to my doctor and it was being sent to the wrong doctor. Dr. Laeita was the doctor who called in the prescription and has been the prescribing doctor for over a year now. However, the form was sent to Dr. Satnick (an allergist whom I have not been treated by in over a year). I cannot comprehend how this could have occurred. Alas, it did and I was sent home with no medicine and already developing symptoms.

On Wednesday the 2nd, I again started my morning by calling the pharmacy and the doctor's office. My doctor did finally get the authorization form but was unable to complete it due to the fact that he is not a participating provider with my insurance company. I had to make an appointment with a new doctor and get the process started all over again. The pharmacist was nice enough to give me two pills to hold me over until my appointment. I had an appointment set for Friday, but it was not upheld due to a booking error on the office's part. So now, I am over 24 hours without the ** and ended up in the emergency room Friday afternoon, due to hives covering my entire body. I was given a shot of steroids and a prescription for a seven-day pack of ** to attempt to treat the current outbreak.

On Sunday, the 6th, I went to fill this prescription and was again very rudely greeted and helped. They told me they were backed up again and it will be a few hours. I informed the woman that I will wait, I need this medicine now and asked her to take a look at my face, hands and body, which was covered with hives. She nastily insisted that it will be a few hours even though she confirmed that it does came prepackaged in a box ready to go. I insisted on waiting, purchased and took OTC ** while I was waiting there suffering and scratching incessantly. Lo and behold, the prescription was ready in 20 minutes.

Finally today, Monday the 7th, I went to my doctor appointment and they called CVS with the new prescription for ** and the authorization number from UHC at 12:00PM. At 1:30, I called your pharmacy to see if it was ready and it was not (still waiting authorization), I stated that the authorization number was called in with the script and gave it to them again. At 3PM, I called again to see if it was ready and again, was told that it was not. They were very behind and I was advised that it should be ready in 2 hours or so. At 5PM, my boyfriend went to pick it up and it was still not ready. After waiting there for half an hour, he was told that it was not going through. The insurance company was still denying it and he will have to pay $146.00 if we wanted it. He agreed to pay for it because I so desperately need it and was told to wait for just one more minute. The pharmacist then came back, said it went through, charged him $1 and he was on his way to bring me my pills finally.

Luckily, he opened it before leaving and discovered that it wasn't even the right drug in the bag. After all of these, he was given a refill of the ** that I no longer take or need and informed the pharmacy of such every time I called or went there in the last week. He went back to the counter and I called and asked for the manager. After being on hold for 7 and minutes, a woman named Danielle picked up my call and I attempted to get this resolved once and for all. She placed me on hold for another 10 minutes, when she came back on the line, I calmly tried to explain the whole situation and voiced my concerns and complaints. She again placed me on hold for 3 minutes, returned to the phone (crying) and told me it went through. She was handing it to my boyfriend and it will cost $3.00. I thanked her for her help and understanding but still wished to lodge a formal complaint as to the way in which I was treated, spoken to and the utter disgrace of it taking a week, an abundance of phone calls and visits to receive my medicine.

She was unable to handle my complaint and the head Pharmacist, Danny **, was again too busy and backed up to help me. I find this whole situation disgraceful and very disturbing. I am a longtime customer of your store and pharmacy and spend a lot of money every time I am there. I have never experienced such poor customer service, especially those involving health and patient care.

While it may not always be obvious to the naked eye, CVS stands for "Consumer Value Stores". The company opened its first store in Lowell, Massachusetts in 1963 and now operates 4,100 stores in more than 30 states. It has absorbed several other chains, including People's Drug, Revco and Arbor Drugs and continues to acquire individual stores throughout its market area. CVS, based in Woonsocket, RI, now has about 110,000 employees. While all this is no doubt very impressive, it doesn't necessarily translate to the kind of caring and personal service one looks for in a neighborhood pharmacy. We received many serious complaints about CVS pharmacies filling prescriptions incorrectly, losing prescriptions, dispensing the wrong quantity of pills and generally mistreating their pharmacy patients; many of whom are in a fragile state to start with. Due to this experience, I reluctantly feel that I will have to utilize another pharmacy for my future needs.

I was still sitting in the parking lot so I immediately called the pharmacy and the woman I talked to Shanderia **, and told her that medication was missing from the bottle. She said pull into the drive-thru and she would make a new label and give me the missing medication. When I got to the window, the woman there, who has blonde or bleach blonde hair, and I am not sure if she is a pharmacist or a pharmacist assistant, said, "Well, that is a controlled substance so we counted it twice", to which I replied "Well, then I guess you counted it wrong twice. She said, “Well, I don't know what to tell you, I then asked for the pharmacy manager and was told he would not be there until the next day which was Feb 3, 2011.

I called at 8:00 the next morning to speak to him and was told he didn't get there until one o'clock. I called back at 1:00-2:00pm, somewhere in between, and was told by him basically the same thing, "Sorry, we don't make mistakes, it was counted twice", to which I again replied, “Well eight of these pills were missing. And I was told basically to "suck it up there is nothing you can do about it". Well there had better be something I can do about it, my son is in severe pain and has been going to the ER, PT, the chiropractor and his regular physician and these were the only pain medication pills that he has! Now I don't know what to do if it's to file a police report for theft or what, but I will tell you one thing. CVS Pharmacy will never fill another of my prescriptions and I want justice for this. My son needs his pain medication.

Today, I had a follow-up with the spine specialist, who, having recognized the extraordinary amount of pain involved (as herniated discs are one of the single most painful injuries to undergo), prescribed a new and different dose of medication than that which he had prescribed the week before (the specific concern regarding the amount of acetaminophen being taken).

Despite the intense pain involved, I drove over to drop off the prescription at the local CVS pharmacy drive-through myself, and was told that I could return in twenty minutes. Forty minutes later, I returned and entered the store on foot again, despite the pains (there had been a longer line at the drive-through). Given the line, I was prepared to be patient, and it was not a great surprise when it took ten minutes before I was told anything. This, however, was when the disaster began.

Finally arriving at the counter, I was told that the prescription could not be filled and I would have to come back tomorrow. This was clearly unacceptable, and I calmly expressed as much--specifically that this was a new prescription, not a refill. It had been issued by the doctor today clarifying the very specific issue now being considered (namely, the need for a different and more appropriate prescription). I went over to another counter with a different technician (who was quite pleasant and helpful) and we called the insurance company. During the phone call, it became clear to me that the wrong medication was being pursued. I pointed this out, and it was quickly resolved (the new prescription went through).

I don't know why, having submitted a brand new prescription quite explicitly, anyone would have decided it a good idea to return to a prior prescription and issue a refill. This, in itself, was troubling. What if I hadn't noticed? What if I had taken the wrong medication or the wrong dosage and it had turned out to be toxic or fatal? This is not a concern to be taken lightly--the negligence demonstrated by this individual could have very real consequences.

Once these details had been resolved, I thought everything was sorted out. I was told that the prescription would be ready in five minutes or less (I was glad, since I had already been waiting for forty-five minutes). I went outside and sat in the car for about eight or ten minutes, and then went inside, figuring that they would surely have the prescription ready at this point.

Instead, I was rudely told that I was being demanding and that I just needed to back off and wait. I'm not sure who is training these individuals in manners, but it certainly needs some work. Nevertheless, I patiently waited another ten minutes. Fifteen minutes later, I inquired, "I'm sorry, but given that this mistake is quite clearly the pharmacy's fault, shouldn't you be prioritizing my medication?" I thought that the question was very reasonable, but the technician felt the need to further belittle my inquiry, insisting it was my fault. I pointed out that this was factually incorrect, and that I had submitted a new prescription to get a new prescription filled, not so that the pharmacist could arbitrarily prescribe whatever she felt appropriate.

At this point, the real problem began. The technician (Roshni, at store #2175) made a face at me and used a tone of voice like a parent would use to a three year-old child. This did not seem particularly a professional behavior to me, so I asked for her name and where I could report her. Then, independently, the pharmacist (Avis **, at store #2175; the single real problem in this equation) inserted herself with great force and rudeness, escalating what, as far as I could tell, must have been her own personal issues (perhaps an interpersonal issue in the pharmacy) into a pharmacy issue.

Specifically, the pharmacist loudly proclaimed that I would need to go elsewhere to get my mediation (which I had now been waiting over an hour to have filled). This did not seem at all reasonable to me, so I inquired as to why she was doing this. To begin with, she ignored me entirely, refusing to say anything in response. When the technician attempted to respond and was not able to explain, she finally responded with a single sentence something similar to: "I have the authority here to do whatever I want."

This didn't seem like a very good point of beginning, so I figured maybe someone else in the store could help. I talked calmly with the assistant store manager and then with the store manager, each of whom attempted to be helpful but seemed unable to do anything. They were, at least, pleasant. Nevertheless, the pharmacist made her presence known and reasserted herself over and against them, making it clear that she didn't care at all what they thought and that they had no power or influence over her.

At no point during this entire scene did I raise my voice or use any word that would be considered inappropriate in any social situation. Yet the pharmacist was patronizing, and called me explicit names and then repeated those names when asked what she had said. She accused me of suspicious activity but then refused to tell me what activity was suspicious (or identify any activity at all that had been out of the norm other than suggesting I intended to report her co-worker, whom I can only assume was her intimate friend).

The pharmacist was simultaneously both smug and self-confident and also irritable and distant. She explicitly assured me that nothing would come out of my complaints, indicating that she had some sort of protection that allowed her to treat customers however she wanted without ever risking anything happening to her. Eventually, she clarified that there had not actually been anything suspicious at all but that I had acted like a **. Aside from finding this incredibly offensive, it belies the entire fact of the matter, which is that I had maintained a cordial and professional demeanor while she had degenerated to being unprofessional.

The pharmacist generally acted as if she didn't hear half of the things I had said, and required me to repeat them. Then, after having me repeat them several times, she responded still holding the phone only long enough to call me names and hand back my prescription, making an offensive comment under her breath and then telling me explicitly that she was ignoring me and ignored all further attempts to communicate.

Frankly, I would not be at all surprised if this pharmacist had actually been on some substance herself, as it seemed that she was in an altered state concerning her ability to relate to other people. I do understand, however, that sometimes such behavior occurs as a result of interaction with drugs without ever having actually consumed any such drugs. In either case, the pharmacist seemed to be very on-edge in a way that I could not quite locate; I suspect that this has something to do with her relation to drugs, although I certainly could not say in what sense.

I believe that this pharmacist needs to be brought to account (among other things) for her problematic relationship to drugs--how this relationship implicates her ability to relate to other people, and how it implicates her ability to be in control of other people's medication. Specifically, it appears that she has become psychically dependent upon drugs as the means by which she can achieve a power trip, or a position of power over the drug user.

This situation is specifically enumerated in Georgia statutes regarding crimes and offenses with controlled substances:

(8) "Dependent," "dependency," "physical dependency," "psychological dependency," or "psychic dependency" means and includes the state of dependence by an individual toward or upon a substance, arising from the use of that substance, being characterized by behavioral and other responses which include the loss of self-control with respect to that substance, or a strong compulsion to use that substance on a continuous basis in order to experience some psychic effect resulting from the use of that substance by that individual, or to avoid any discomfort occurring when the individual does not use that substance.

While it is clear that the clause is intended primarily to address the explicit user of the substance, it is also clear that the clause is intended to include any individual who may come in direct relation to the context of the drug. Specifically, behavioral and other responses such as loss of self-control with respect to the substance and some psychic effect such as joy, or self-satisfaction. The pharmacist made it clear that she was quite pleased with herself for forcing me to go elsewhere.

Further, the document clarifies that:

(22) "Potential for abuse" means and includes a substantial potential for a substance to be used by an individual to the extent of creating hazards to the health of the user or the safety of the public, or the substantial potential of a substance to cause an individual using that substance to become dependent upon that substance.

The effect of this misconduct is the denial of treatment, which creates a hazardous condition for the health of the user. At the very least, this condition is one of extreme and unmanageable pain, which is clearly not acceptable. Additionally, it is clear that the effect of this denial of treatment is to force painful dependence on a substance that is not available.

As I understand, the appropriate recourse in this situation is that the Georgia Pharmacy Board revoke the pharmacists' license for practice while she is put under review:

The board shall be authorized to deny registration, to deny renewal, or to revoke or suspend the registration of a pharmacy technician for any of the grounds set forth in Code Section 26-4-60 or Code Section 43-1-19.

I am sure, from the interactions, that the pharmacist will invent any sort of story in order to cover over this exchange. I can only hope that the store in question has retained their video footage so that the store and board can review the specifics of the exchange. At the very least, I expect her to appear before the board for review:

However, said denial of a technician application, denial of the renewal of a certificate, or suspension or revocation of a technician registration shall not be considered a contested case under Chapter 13 of Title 50, the "Georgia Administrative Procedure Act," but said applicant or registrant shall be entitled to an appearance before the board.

and

(f) The board may deny or refuse to renew a pharmacy license if it determines that the granting or renewing of such license would not be in the public interest.

It is self-evident, regardless of all other details, that this pharmacist's behavior is not in the public interest. It is quite precisely against the public interest, as she has invoked her authority as pharmacist in order to carry out personal vendettas against customers that she doesn't even know (but apparently has prejudged as suspicious).

I expect clear steps to be taken to remedy this situation. Specifically, I await:

-a detailed enumeration of what has been done internally to address this behavior and to ensure no further such behavior occurs.

This is clearly not an acceptable situation. I look forward to hearing how you intend to address and correct such horror.

We were informed by Rebecca that she couldn't tell us "off the top of her head!" I wasn't asking for her to inform me "off the top of her head," but rather check her records in the computer that provides pharmaceutical information. However, she had no interest in helping us. I guess that she would rather see a six-year old girl suffer. This is the worst customer service I have ever dealt with. We normally go to CVS further east but we were dining near the Centereach store and I never had an experience like this in Selden.

She told me that it was standard procedure to fill the prescription for the amount my insurance would pay for. I stated that my insurance company (BCBS) did not write the prescription and CVS did not have the right or the authority to give me anything other than what my doctor had prescribed. The pharmacist was extremely defensive and stated, "95% of our customers want us to give them only what the insurance would pay for.” And she also said, "We can't cater to everyone." I said, “I am not asking you to "cater" to me, only to give me exactly what my doctor prescribes.”

Many months went by before I realized this was happening. About 4 months ago, I made a doctor's appointment to ask my doctor to change my prescription from 20 pills to 30 pills to last me the entire month. He stated that they had always prescribed 30 EA with a renewal every 4 months. This is when I learned that CVS was not filling the prescription as prescribed, but as per what the insurance company would pay for. At that time, I brought it to the attention of the pharmacist. I was told that they always fill prescriptions according to what the insurance would pay for.

My son started taking the medicine on Wednesday night and Thursday night, the next day, Friday, he was not feeling good, but he went to school. In the afternoon, I received a call from school clinic that he is sick and needs to be pick up. (I wondered what could happen, but I was not still sure that CVS Pharmacy could do such a mistake, and be so careless). I picked up my son, and as soon as we got home, he ran in the bathroom, and start vomiting for at least 20 to 30 minutes. He was sitting on the floor and had no energy to stand up. He had pain in his stomach also. I got so scared, I went inside cleaned him and took him to Inova Urgent Care Center, which was close to my house. Once they checked him and checked the medicine, they found out that CVS Pharmacy gave me the wrong medicine. Instead of **, they gave me ** 50-25 MG cap. The doctor said this medicine is for blood pressure, not for heartburn or nausea.

The Urgent Care doctor called the pharmacy and explained. They were very sorry, and asked me to go back to get the refund for the wrong medicine, and fill the correct medicine. I could not find the supervisor or manager to speak with, but someone in-charged of that shift. They got my name and telephone number and said they reported this mistake to the leads and they will call me. This all happened on Friday 01/07/11, and today is 01/12/2011, no one called me yet. But my son feels much better. I am so thankful that we went to Urgent Care quickly to stop CVS’s mistake, and to save my son, although, my son could not go school not only one day, but three days, Saturday, Sunday and Monday. He had to rest and go through unnecessary pain.

I think human is not perfect, they make mistakes, but for places like pharmacy where they are dealing with human life, it is not acceptable. This is a huge mistake, and they must take it seriously and correct it. My son went through all unnecessary things. On top of this, with the economy we have right now, it is an unnecessary cost for me. I am a single mother raising two children. I hope whoever is in-charged will bring a quick correction, to hire qualified people who care about others. Thank you.

I have spoken with the staff at this pharmacy repeatedly and whenever I go to get a prescription filled, I remind them that the insurance coverage is Humana. They always have to redo the prescription, as they never charge it to Humana. Yet again, today, they charged me the full price (minus the 10% discount). My husband went to pick up the medication for me and told them to be sure to use the Humana insurance. They advised him that they had done so.

Either this CVS is trying deliberately to defraud me, or their staff is woefully lacking in the capacity to use their computer system. In either case, this is completely unacceptable and it needs to be addressed.

As I approached the front counter, I grabbed a couple of clearance items such as candy bags and a box of perfume. I asked the cashier to do separate transactions, one for another CVS card (a non-employee card) and one with my non-working discount card. The first card with a 301 area code gave me $2.50, which I used on the next transaction. It equaled to $4.73 before taxes. I handed the cashier the $2.50 coupon. After redeeming the coupon, the new total was $2.37 which I paid with cash. On the third transaction, I scanned my non-working discount card and proceeded with the rest of the items I have. I handed the cashier my $16.00 extra bucks. When it didn't work, he called the manager on duty for assistance. That's when all the havoc started (remember, I used to work for the company).

She told me that I couldn't redeem the coupon because I didn't work for the company anymore, which I thought was irrelevant. I then told her that I just got this coupon from the ECC. She then insisted that there is nothing she can do because I don't work for the company anymore and my coupon is invalid. As a customer, I got disappointed and decided to leave without purchasing the rest of my items. As I walked out of the store, I decided to return the items that I previously purchased. I gave the cashier my items and told him that I don't want the items anymore. I overheard her saying "the ** does she wants now?". As he continued with the transaction, I can already tell that it was going to be an issue because the screen was asking him to do two different tenders: One for the cash and the other for the coupon.

He continued doing it three times more when she finally said "here, let me do it for you". Apparently, she didn't know how to do it either. The basic solution was that she would give me $2.37 back in cash and $2.50 in store credit or in a form of money card. As I tried to explain it to her, she completely ignored me and said that she will have to issue all of the refund in money card and the system wouldn't let her do it. I told her that it wasn't right for her to give it to me all in money card because I paid for it cash. After a couple of exchange of words, I told her to give me my original receipt, which she refused to give me. I went ahead and called a police officer to further assist me with the situation since I wasn't getting anywhere with her. I wasn't getting my money back or the items. She then told me to leave the store and I refused to leave the store without my money or my items, and I told her that I will wait for the police officer.

She then told me, "I guess you'll be standing here the whole night because I think you are bluffing". As she walked away from the register, she continued with her rants saying "that's probably why you got fired" (this was in front of her co-workers and customers and have nothing to do with anything). I wanted to go outside to wait for the police officer so I grabbed my stuff. As I approached the front door, she stopped me and told me that I couldn't go outside because I didn't pay for the items. I told her she didn't give my money back therefore, this is mine. She then said "now you're stealing". As I confronted her, the officer came. She told the officer her part of the story and I told him my side. I then told her that "go ahead with the transaction and I will deal with it in a different level" which I initially proposed.

My problem is why with the hassle of me getting my coupon redeemed, the poor customer service that I received because I used to work for the company, the lack of training and professionalism towards customers? This would have been avoided with proper training, coaching and having the right person for the job. It's not about if I am getting 1 cent or a million dollar, it's about what was right. I wanted to keep my old CVS card in belief that I wouldn't lose my reward points. I got a new card with a different number so I could continue with shopping in CVS Pharmacy. I couldn't tell her the telephone number for my employee discount card because I don't remember. What happened to CVS Pharmacy? Did she stopped the "good customer service" because of my race or she realized that I used to work for CVS and I don't deserve it? Or was it because I wasn't dressed nicely? Does it matter if I was asking for $2 back or $100 dollars? I know it's much better than this.

This is the worst experience that I ever have had with a pharmacy, and I just found out that not long ago the head pharmacist at that particular CVS was removed from the store in handcuffs. I assume some kind of prescription fraud. If I had been aware that this was the kind of business that they did, I would have certainly gone elsewhere.

When I went to pick up the prescription, they told me that they tried again and they were denied again. CVS did not resubmit because there was only one submission made that day not twice like the tried to tell me. They were just to lazy to put it through again. And when I explained that my wife need the medication because the withdrawal from it was severe and asked the manager to act on it quickly. He replied that he could not help me in the way I required. I had to move the prescription to another local pharmacy to have it filled quickly. Also the manager was a pharmacist and he did not know anything about a common drug ** so they cannot be the top of the class there.

I needed to fill my prescription by Saturday knowing the trip would be extremely difficult for me with my medical condition. On 12/9/2010, I picked up my medication at CVS. I cannot drive more than ten to twenty minutes without pain so on the road from my house (my sister drove from Queens on Friday to take us both to the airport) I took 30mg of **, 20 minutes later no help. This went on over and over again, from PA to NY to the airport on the plane than From the second airport to my sisters house in Florida, I kept taking 3 or 4 tablets, than waiting 1/2 hour the entire time (18 hours) I was in extreme pain, I kept taking the pills to no avail. I did take 30mg of the drug that my sister had in Florida 20 minutes later I was pain free.

I left my house with 90 pills, when I got to my sisters house there where 59 left in the container. I took 31 tablets-310mgs of this drug, I returned home (thank God my mom is doing better) and called the pharmacy and spoke with Mr. ** at CVS and explained what happened. I thought he would ask me to bring the medication back to him to check on the problem, and replace the remaining pills with actual **, I was very wrong. I was accused of having a serious problem suggesting that I had built up a tolerance to the drug, he also threatened to call the cops because I had taken my sisters controlled substance.

He then told me, he was going to call my primary doctor to report me for abusing the drug. I'm at a loss as to what to do from here. I have no idea what I have in this container, I can say with certainty, it is not **. If it was, I would be extremely dead. I am hoping you can help me with this problem, or suggest someone who can.

Yes I do have to take a lot of medications. I have had to for 8 yrs now since my first injury in 2002 which disabled me. Since I moved to Apollo, FL Beach from Brandon, FL 1 1/2 yrs ago I have tried to move over all of my Rx needs to this store. The pharmacy is constantly very disorganized, a few people are very nice, out of their way nice, the others not so much. They treat you horribly.

Recently I had a new Rx from my pain management doctor that I handed to them. They told me it was not covered by medicare without looking it up or calling the phone numbers readily available to them. They just did not want to make the effort. This was on a Saturday. I called my pain management doctor, who only puts you on a phone log and you never get a call back. The pharmacy would not help (keep in mind I have called my Rx prescriber with medicare again today & this medication does not need a prior authorization). I did not mention that I also got no help with some new glaucoma eye drops that without which I can and will go blind.

Finally the doctor's office called me back and asked my Rx number. I only know and carry my medicare card which should be sufficient. So the doctor's office did not call the pharmacy; they asked that I call them and have pharmacy call the doctor's office. It seems no one cares to do their job and these are professionals.

So I told the pharmacist you are most welcome to give them my medicare Rx provider info. (important fact: a pharmacy is not regulated by any HEPPA laws. They can tell any doctor any meds you are or have taken) Which is what this pharmacist did, she told the office mgr of docs office everything but my underwear size, not requested. Her only job was to get a prior authorization for this med by this doctor. She took it upon herself to tell the doc's office that I had been given a different narcotic by my primary doctor. I had recently had 800 lbs fall on my knee all the way down to my foot, so she treated me for that. The pharmacist could not know this info. Well,this ended up in my doctor's office manager calling me and telling me, that any and all Rx's were now suspended. He would do the 2 thousanddollar a month steroid injections but for me to get my meds from my primary doctor.

This has effected my integrity. I now have a "Suspension" on my medical records, that I will take the x-ray prescription to him on my next appointment which is tomorrow and try to get this off my medical records. I am a responsible 52 year old that has responsibly taken medication for 8 years. I am allowed to go to my primary doctor and be treated for an emergency. Also I was hospitalized for another accident, a fall, the doctor had not idea about that medication I was given. I presume the singing pharmacist was not privy to my hospital records.

Thank goodness I had some different medications already filled as you cannot just stop any medication I am on. This could have resulted in seizures as it has been over ten days since the singing pharmacist got me suspended. I am amazed at the length that people will go to, to cause problems in your life when they are neither responsible to do so or have all of the information to make a decision like this.

I have contacted CVS headquarters in regards to this matter. They felt it necessary to pass this problem to management. At least they seem to be taking it seriously. There is no way to make up for the way I did feel by being suspended or treated like a common drug addict. I have only taken meds that limits are controlled by medicare and have never paid for any extra to CVS , or any other pharmacy, nor do I do illegal drugs. I am not sure if I will be able to get this off my permanent medical records but this will cause me many problems from now on if I am not able to.

It is also unfortunate that my doctor had not spoken with me, prior to the "suspension". It could have been handled differently, like we are not going to authorize this Rx and will talk to you in ten days at your regular appointment time. But I should have never had to endure all of this mess that was only created by a very overzealous pharmacist whose name was not given to me.

I'm not sure if any longterm damage will come of this. The entire weekend including today, Monday December 13th, has been a blur with difficulty remembering things that I have done. I stopped taking the medication Sunday at 9:00PM when I realized it was not an antibiotic.

Thinking this was an imbalance in my inner ear from a cold earlier that week, I decided to change my flight to the following day and take a hotel room for another night. I went through about 26 hours of nausea, blurred vision, no balance and anxiety and just laid in hotel bed for about 26 hours. I finally felt well enough to walk while using a wall to support myself so I went to the airport and flew home.

The following day was better but still not 100% with on-and-off dizzy spells. It wasn't until I got home and was about to take another "** 20mg" that I noticed the pill was the same color as my ** but a slightly different shape. This made me suspicious so I peeled off the CVS ** 20mg label and found the manufacturer's label that read "** 150mg". Apparently, 150mg is a strong dose of this drug, patients are usually ramped up to this strength over several weeks of gradually increased doses.

I will not be treated like this anymore and when I left the store last night, the guy at the front cashier told me that I was the 4th person that walked out mad about the pharmacy. So yeah CVS, you will not treat people like c*** and get away with it.

I was prescribed a cream which I was told by my dermatologist to put on the heels of my foot. Upon opening the box, the instructions says it was acne cream. I took it to CVS and asked about it, the pharmacist says, "No, it's for your face/acne." My question is then well, why does it say apply to feet? The issue then becomes a finger pointing match at my dermatologist. No cares or concerns over my question at hand. If I knew what all these fancy names for medications, most of which cannot even be pronounced, meant I would have no problems. The fact that the people working at this CVS don't bother to show any kindness or courtesy with their customers just adds to the frustration!

The night prior, I was there and witnessed customers almost yelling at the pharmacist in anger and frustration. This pharmacy is terrible and has zero people skills whatsoever. Customer service is basically not even on their list of business dos judging by the way they treat people. They definitely lost my business!

Friday, I came in and found out that the prescription was not filled and they said they have not heard from my doctor but they would keep trying. On Monday, they said they called again and were waiting. I called my doctor and they said earlier that day was the first contact that he had from CVS and they would process the call. Tuesday, my doctor called it into the CVS back home instead of Florida. I called the store and told them it was in Ohio and she said she would call, get it and I could pick it up at 2:00PM. I waited till 5:00, went and it still had not been filled. I had to wait some more. That made me wait for 7 days for my insulin. They have tried to pacify me by giving me gift cards, but that is not making me confident in your service.

Solving that issue took 6 months of Doctor-Patient-Caremark back and forth correspondence. A recent order for test strips is now in its 3rd week, with a Caremark refusal to fill due to expired prescription (understandable), a claim by them to be unable to contact doctor for refill (bull, took me 5 minutes). Now a claim that no fax of a new prescription has been received. I'm told I can contact the doctor and get another prescription for a 30-day supply.

Apparently, Caremarks major employee activity is collecting money, while occasionally sending out a few pills of one sort or another, not necessarily the right ones, just something to get patients off their back long enough to allow them to count some more money.

How can an increase of 100- 400% in co-pays be tolerated? I thought the new health care reform package was to protect the American consumer against this type of activity by the health care insurance industry.

When my doctor had to write me a new prescription, Caremark sent me an 86-day supply rather than my normal 90-day supply. It took 3 hours on the phone with 5 people with Caremark to find out why this was done. Everyone said the prescription was dispensed as written but I did not receive enough for 90 days and the prescription was written for a 90-day supply.

Finally, I reached a supervisor who admitted that it was not dispensed as written and I or the doctor should have been contacted. That is the only time I have been contacted about a prescription by Caremark is when my credit card was declined. I was issued a credit voucher which Caremark lost the next time I mailed in an order. I now make it a practice to call in and verify what I am getting and the amounts I am to receive before they are sent. This is a lot of time devoted to something that should be a simple procedure. It is also very frustrating when you receive a new prescription from your doctor and have to call up to see if it is covered by Caremark. I have turned down 2 prescriptions from my doctor because they are not covered under the Caremark service. I wish Kohl’s would select a different provider of prescriptions. One that was a bit more diligent and that covered the medications we get coverage for.

He then replied, "I am by myself; you will have to wait." So my husband waited. He then called me back a hour later telling me that 2 of my prescriptions were not covered by my insurance (Amerihealth Mercy). So my husband asked him if he could call the insurance and see why it is not working. He told my husband no, he cannot call the insurance and for us to call.

I said, "Excuse me we have been through this plenty of times with your other location in Easton and they always say the pharmacist is suppose to call especially as he was only waiting for prescriptions." While on speakerphone, I told the tech that he can at least give me a 5-day supply until this issue gets resolved; he replied he could not. I then called the insurance and had them in a conference call. Once on the phone, the insurance pharmacy rep explained that the only reason the two were denied was because the doses in the allotted time were high and they needed an explanation as to why. She then said to hold on she was going to give the pharmacy a call because this is not how it should be handled.

For the 4th time, my insurance says that all pharmacies should know never to deny a patient medication but to supply a 5-day supply until approval is reached. Now my husband and I were still on hold unbelieving that this is happening and I was so much in agony I began to cry. I then called up to the hospital and spoke to the nurse, Rose, on the 4th floor where I was discharged and I advised her of what was going on and she said, "since 8:30 am, that is ridiculous. Why did the pharmacy not call?"

I then told her he wants us to do his job. So the nurse said she would give the doctor the info to call in less quantity. So by this time Amerihealth rep came back on and she said she apologized but it took her a long time to explain to the pharmacy tech how to put this insurance and medication through. Now why would she have to tell him how to put it through and they trusted him to work by himself putting peoples lives into his hands. It's unbelievable.

She asked me why I needed such a high dose and I explained that the regular dose I had was not working at all. Now she hung up with CVS and said they will give a decision on the high dose but she approved for the lower dose and a 5-day supply. Mind you, this is not my 1st or 2nd complaint against them and all they ever do is apologize and send me a $10 gift card. This is a serious matter and my medications are very important to me especially as I'm terminally ill and have a hole in my esophagus.

But that is not pain and suffering as per the risk management guy. I advised of my complaint on the 8th that I made to customer relations and no one ever called me back. So this gentleman named David today listened to my story and asked me what I am asking for. I told him compensation for pain and suffering and negligence. He then replied, "That was not pain and suffering; that was poor customer service. You should call customer service or Dean ******* customer service manager."

i was floored. How can he tell me what is pain. He then offered me $150; he said $50 for every hour lost. That was an insult. I can go legally as per discussed with customer relations but I was told there was no need for that and that risk management would work with me but they did not. They belittled me. After coming home, I received a call from the head supervisor of risk management who told me since I did not accept the $150, they are mailing me a denial and there is nothing else they can do for me.

Being a pharmacist, there is no room for error as you have people's lives in your hands daily and to have the attitude of "I don't care" or "that's not in my job description" is horrible. No one knows another person's pain also. Today while finishing this letter, I returned a call from nursing manager at Muhlenberg Hospital. Ms Debbie states that they have witnesses and she herself spoke with Dr ***** who in fact confirmed she spoke with the pharmacist the same day I called and she was told by the pharmacist that there was not a problem with my prescription just a problem with the insurance coverage.

How wrong is that if you reference my first complaint to this day I am not better and still feel very much so in pain and my anxiety is through the roof. How dare anyone play God? This is not the kind of caring, personal service one looks for in a neighborhood pharmacy. There are many serious complaints about CVS pharmacies filling prescriptions incorrectly, losing prescriptions, dispensing the wrong quantity of pills and generally mistreating their pharmacy patients, many of whom are in a fragile state to start with.

Panic and anxiety are nothing to play with; it feels as though you are having a heart attack in every sense like a fish with no water. The pain is unbearable. Because of this, I had to go back to the ER and back to the mental health facility to get more meds which they want me to come back to CVS for. He can take care of me but I will never go back and am presently looking for a new pharmacy. I am terminally ill and suffer from syncope and lots of nerve pain from several disorders and this is a huge battle without my medications. How can I take care of myself or children?

When I gave my son his breathing treatment at home, I noticed he didn't have the same response that he had earlier and immediately went to check the medicine. It wasn't until then that I noticed that the medicine that was filled by CVS on 8/21/10 was expired and showed an exp date of 7/1/10. From my understanding it is the Pharmacists duty to ensure that all medications filled are valid. In this case it wasn't and could've have an ill effect on my child. I returned the medicine to the store on 9/18/10 and the pharmacist apologized and gave me another ** box that belonged to someone else, which he later ripped the label off in front of me. I'm very frustrated at the lack of concern and carelessness that was displayed. This is a medication that we use to help my son breathe and they acted is if it were an over the counter medicine. Completely unprofessional and this is not something that I would ever forget.

When I called the pharmacy, I then discovered, to my surprise, that the prescription I had was not mine. Though the medication for that script was ** 50mg. In my state of pain, when taking meds I assumed this was my script. I inspected the bottle more closely and found that the script sticker I had been taking my dosage by was covering my own script sticker. But the medication in the bottle was my own and I was to be taking 2 pills every 6 hours. For the past week, I have been suffering in pain taking half of my actual prescribed dosage due to pharmacy error.

I spoke to a pharmacist over the phone who said he would call my doctor and explain and refill my prescription as originally written. When I picked it up later that day, the pharmacist on duty said he had no idea how such a mistake was made and they were truly sorry. They gave me a $25.00 gift card on the spot along with my refill, which I inspected thoroughly for my name and any other errors. $25.00 for dealing with unnecessary pain for a week due to their blunder? On another note, at one point the pharmacist attempted to take the messed up script bottle and remove the sticker. I demanded it back that instant and told them I needed to show this to my physician. I am currently waiting to see my physician.

This caused unnecessary elevated pain for a week. I am unable to stand or walk over 25 minutes without spasms in kidney area. I’m waking all hours of the night in pain. Restless even at rest. The general pain has been physically and mentally draining and exhausting.

I also have to mention that this is not the first time that they've messed up my prescription at that same pharmacy. Back in December of last year, I had surgery and put in a prescription for pain meds. When my daughter went to pick the prescription up they could not find it. She was there more than 30 minutes while they tried to figure it out. Come to find out, they filed my prescription under another person's name with the same last name as mine. When they gave me the prescription bottles it said Joshua **. I don't understand how this mix up could happen especially since they always ask for the date of birth before filling.

I'm just upset because of the lack of professionalism and service that I've received. I have a husband and four children and we do a lot of business with CVS. We only have our prescriptions filled there even though Rite Aid is closer to us.

I had gone to my doctor before I realized I was overdosed. She had set up an emergency colon check and sent me to a urologist and of course, they found nothing. All this cost me over $600.00 in my co-pays and CVS said they would pay for my co-pays. I sent them all my bills, I also called my internist and she said I had an overdose of **. It makes your intestines swell, causes profuse sweating, seeing things, hearing things, etc. CVS said they would pay my co-pays and never did. This all took place last Christmas and have not heard from them. I started paying payments recently so my bills wouldn't go to collections. I'm sure that's what CVS wanted.

Well, I just changed to Rite Aid for my prescriptions and will never go to CVS again. I tend to buy a lot of other products while I wait for prescriptions. At Rite Aid yesterday, I spent $130.00 on other products and I guess I'll have to hurt CVS in the pocket if nothing else. If enough people do this, CVS will be hurting. Since this horrible experience with CVS, I've been telling everyone I know about what happened and 2 of my friends said they are going elsewhere. Also, Rite Aid has better deals on items in the store.

They told me what the prescription was supposed to be for. The head pharmacy said he was "Sorry", but no explanation as to why you would not make a call to the Dr. or at least tell the patient that you changed a prescription - and I thought that was illegal to do so anyway. My daughter suffered pain that she shouldn't of had to had I known they had not filled this prescription correctly, I was following the label, as you are told to do. Complete incompetence to not communicate properly with Dr. and patient. You are dealing w/lives here, this is important. My daughter suffered needless pain due to the under dosage by the pharmacy, done without consulting doctor and/or patient.

My daughter and I proceeded to shop in the store. After about half an hour, I went to counter to see what was taking so long. The said pharmacist was filling it. We went back 15 minutes later, still filling. Ten minutes later, they gave me the prescriptions. I paid for it and we walked out of the store. I opened the prescriptions in the car and found it was not what the doctor prescribed. I went back into pharmacy to speak with the pharmacist, Johnny **. He said the prescription ordered wasn't covered. I told him about the "free prescription" card and the technician.

He said she told him it wasn't covered by my insurance. I reiterated that I had a card to get the prescription for free, so why wasn't it filled correctly? He was adamant that the technician couldn't use the "free" card and he had to call the doctor to change the prescription. At no time did they mention this to me and asked if I wanted to pay for the prescription. Of course, I couldn't verify anything with the initial technician because she was off duty. Mr. ** said he called the doctor and the doctor changed the prescription’s strength and dosing. Instead of 50 mg XR, Mr. ** filled 50 mg 2 x per day. He was adamant that that was what the doctor prescribed. The doctor had left for the day so I couldn't verify myself.

I gave my 8-year-old the prescription per the pharmacist instructions. She was lethargic and barely coherent (when she was awake) all weekend. My husband called the insurance and the doctor Monday morning and found out that (1) the pharmacy didn't have the "free" prescription in stock, that is why they didn't fill it (not because it wasn't "covered" or the card didn't work); (2) per the doctor, the medicine substituted should have been 25 mg 2 x per day, not 50 mg (pharmacist error); and (3) the XR is covered under my insurance.

When my husband called the CVS pharmacy that filled the prescription to complain, he got the brushed off. (1) CVS insisted the prescription was filled per the doctor's verbal orders (or at least how Johnny ** heard them. English is not his first language); (2) Johnny ** is a "floating" pharmacist that was filling in for someone on vacation so it won't happen again (it's someone else's problem); and (3) CVS only had the XR in the blister packs (which is not covered by my insurance), and since they didn't have the "bottled" kind in stock, they told me it wasn't covered (they will withhold the "whole" truth if it puts a quick buck in their pocket).

When my husband came home later that day, he only had **, stating they didn't give me the **. So August 3rd the next day, he went back and was told they had to call my doctor (who is on vacation) to get a new prescription and that they cannot find the one I gave them. I have no substitute for this medication and they gave me no solution except that I have to wait until or if they resolve them losing my prescription

Realizing that there is supposed error, I drove to the store at 9pm on Friday, July 20, 2010. I asked the pharmacist to check the actual tablets. Sure enough, they were 25mg. I asked him to check the prescription, sure enough, that was supposed to be 5mg tablets. He recommended we go to the ER. The side effects of escalating on this drug were apparent, severe eye twitching and uncontrollable jerking. He was a little unwell, sore stomach and headaches but thankfully, no rash which is common in rapid increase in this particular medication. I am of course, monitoring him. To think what could have been. I am still much stressed about this situation. It brings me to tears and I sure hope they will be no after effects in the long term.

My mom at 85 years old had the sense to look at the bottle and look at the description of the pills. She realized the pills were in the wrong bottles and waited for me to come so I could check the bottles. When I got there, sure enough we looked at the description of the pills and the ** was in the ** bottle and the ** was in the ** bottle. Mom was supposed to take 6 ** pills for her first dosage. She would have taken 6 of the 25 mg ** had she not counted the pills. What would have happened to mom - a coma, maybe death? I shudder to think of what might have happened because she took one of the ** and she was groggy the entire next day!

I did go to the CVS that filled the prescription and was told that the "robot" who fills the pills is never incorrect. Then the person who actually filled the prescription came to apologize. She said she didn't know how it happened. This was the first time a mistake was made at this CVS. Every time I have a prescription filled there is an error, either not enough pills or not given the number of prescriptions refilled, etc. If they need more staff in the Pharmacy they should really consider hiring. This incident could have ended in a tragedy. This incident happened on Tuesday, July 27,2010.

I went to CVS last week to have the prescription filled, and when I came home, I opened the bag and saw instead of the usual large tube I got every month, two smaller tubes. I didn't think much of it, thinking maybe this was a different generic version of his cream, and I applied it all over him like I usually do.

Days later, I noticed his face and body peeling very badly and harsh red spots in places like his groin and armpits that looked nothing like his eczema, even at its worse. I called the doctor immediately to see if maybe they were the ones that changed the prescription, and the nurse on call informed me that nothing had changed and the doctor gave me the usual ** that I've been using for years.

Desperate for an answer, I ran home and grabbed the tube of cream that I'd been using and googled the name of the medication CVS had given me. It's **. Imagine my shock and horror when I found out I had been using a strong acne medication all over my son instead of his usual cream!

I called the pharmacy right away, and while CVS was quick to notice their error and fill the correct medication for my son, it does not erase the pain and discomfort that he is now going through because of their error. These people need to be more careful, especially when it is a child at stake! I know they include a paper describing the medicine and its uses with every script dispensed, but after going to them every month and getting the same thing, I did not think anything had changed! If this is a medicine that does not get prescribed for a child, then why did nobody say anything to me? It's not right!

Jasmin did, the next day around 4:00 on June 4 Friday. I told her that the pharmacist had never contacted me to tell me that my prescription was ready. Jasmin apologized and said that the prescription would be ready to pick-up. On Saturday I went to pick-up, with the right dosage. They did not open the pharmacy at 8:00 as posted, they opened at 8:16, they were late. On top of all this aggravation, I had to pay for CVS pharmacist's mistake. The least they could do was give me a full refund. It is a shame that CVS has such incompetent, bad attitude employees. They should be fired. CVS needs to reorganize and change everyone there, from pharmacy supervisor Jasmin, to the pharmacist Ann, to staff. Where is CVS getting their employees? Work is work especially with customers. CVS needs to address these dangerous issues, which are very important. I assure you that CVS will face law suits with these type of employees. I want a full refund.

Economically, I would have lost money by getting only half of the antibiotic I paid for, and less sleep medicine than prescribed. Physically, I would probably still have a sinus infection without all the medication ordered, and lost some sleep from not having all the sleep medicine. Luckily, I have caught all the errors and will going down there today to get the rest of my medications. I'm a registered nurse and know that if I was to make a medication error at the hospital, I would be written up and pay consequences. What is being done with all these prescription errors? I caught mine but others are probably less fortunate. I will no longer be using CVS Pharmacies.

It doesn't matter to me if the drug was controlled or not, I couldn't take my son's prescription to get filled at another CVS since they had to abide by finding it at their pharmacy and I couldn't take it to a competitor pharmacy since the prescription was written on and could not be filled anywhere else. All of a sudden, I got a call at home at 9:02PM that evening from the same pharmacist who told me that I could come by to pick up the prescription and that it was found. This has never happened before and I have never been treated like this as a customer, especially threatened that I would be in some sort of trouble with the government (FDA) since the prescription was controlled and I demanded it be filled for my son's dosage due the next morning before he attended school the next day in preparation for his final exams. I am in shock how professional pharmacists and their departments could lose controlled substances and any other medicine for that matter.

When I called CVS to report the error, it was minimalized. The genius said, "Well, that's why I called you." He never said he might have given me the wrong prescription. Some nonsense about a "double" order.

They were put in a brown bag and handed to me. I never even saw if there was a pharmacist on the property. When I got home I noticed that the ** tablets had directions to take one teaspoon every 12 hours! It also said the nasal spray should be taken once a day but did not list once in each nostril. I looked up every pill before I took anything. I contacted the pharmacy board and asked for information about how many miss-fills they have reported and if they have any pending sanctions. Why is it easier to know if a massage therapist or hairdresser has complaints against them? This should be easily accessible public record!

Well, I have been reading up on so many eras they make but, unless you are physically harmed there is no repercussion to them. Somehow this has to be stopped before harm is done, some sort of group suite? Enough is enough! Before it is too late for someone, overdosing me on antidepressants could have made me reversed for reason of taking. The suicidal thoughts etc as well as side effects I felt.

This time I insisted after stating I was going to call their district office and they decided that they did have the medication. Also, my son and his fiance also take this medication (and others) and they also have the same problem. They were told they do not have the medication and to go elsewhere. It's almost as if the pharmacy is making a moral judgment like birth control or the morning after pill in deciding whether or not to fill the prescription.

So, here I was taking somebody else's blood pressure medication (which I already take myself) instead of the pain medication. I was sick for three days. I did call the poison control and the hospital. I have a blood pressure machine and kept track of it. It was as low as 92/57, which mine is never that low. I just know it scared me to death. It is a good thing I just took four in two days instead of four times a day. The hospital said, I would be in the hospital. Oh, pharmacist gave my husband a fifty dollar gift card which I haven't touched. I was pretty much out of it for two days (Saturday and Sunday), I had to work on Monday and felt week all day.

Debbie then called and complained there was no dial tone so she tried her cell and still complained, then she asked me to call myself on my own cell (which was strange) so I did and the line is busy. I told her the ER is busy and either the line is busy and to keep trying until someone answers. Debbie then left me hanging at the counter and walked away to fill other customers' Rxs. I stood there staring at her, she would glance then just keep at her station.

Even the pharmacy tech was embarrassed and asked her if she's going to help me and to give an answer. Still nothing so I yelled, "I'm ** done with you people! " and left to Vons Pharmacy where she gave the best customer service and showed empathy to me. There was another time where I ordered an antibiotic for my other child and the idiot pharmacist at that time gave me the powdered form only and it wasn't even mixed at all. Talk about bad service! So if you want a good reliable pharmacy, CVS Pharmacy in Glendale, Ca is not for you.

The pharmacist realized the error and switched the medication to the correct physician but needed to substitute one topical from a gynecologic version to just a topical. When he have us the "corrected" tube, we discovered that he erred again and gave us a 1% strength gel instead of a .75% gel! Again, we were thankful it was just a topical medication instead of an oral, and that we caught it before use. No damage due to our vigilance. This was caught only because I clearly understood the instructions from my physician and did not take the pharmacists word that the medicines were correct.

The first night we gave it to him he went to sleep and woke up crying of his stomach hurting about an hour after taking the medicine. He then started vomiting. The next night I gave him the medicine and when he had taken it, I looked at the bottle and under the pharmacy label which said 4mg I saw the manufacturer's label had 10mg. He had been getting over double the dose he should have been getting.

I called the pharmacy and they said that they would refund us our out of pocket amount for the prescription and refill 2 months for free. My husband said that $36.74 is not worth my son's life. I just hope this medicine doesn't have any underlying effects on him. I hope this hasn't affected any of his organs or anything like a lot of medicines can do with taking double the dose he was prescribed.

In fact the pharmacy said that the pills weren't even chewable tablets which he was supposed to have. I feel terrible about him taking it, but he had never taken it before so I didn't think anything of this being wrong. I will always check behind the pharmacy now...all pharmacies. This is very scary to think my child has taken half a bottle of double-strength medicine.

Previously in 2009, I ordered ** and was shorted 30 pills. After that, I switched to a mail order drug plan, but I had to change drug plans because my plan no longer was available in 2010. I went back to CVS in 2010 to order my meds. I am looking into finding another, more reliable pharmacy.

I immediately called CVS to alert them that they had sold me the wrong dosage. They adamantly denied that they had done so and claimed they do not sell the 0.5 ml bottle and I was mistaken even though I have the bottle to prove it. They told me I would have to go back to the store with the box the bottle was in so they could look into it. The bottle was already disposed of on the 10th. CVS refuses to do anything about correcting their mistake even though I have the bottle they sold me.

I am having headaches and have elevated blood pressure even more so because I am now worried that I may have a stroke. High blood pressure runs in my family. It killed my grandmother at a young age and I am very concerned about this. These people were very rude and showed no concern for me or my health. I am livid. What right do they have to not fill a legal prescription from a doctor? I went to a CVS out of my area a few weeks ago before I ran out and they told me they didn't have the same mg dose and could I come back in a day or two. That was before I unsubscribed. I cannot believe this is happening.

I would have overlooked the error of giving me the wrong drug (this time) but what really upset me was the fact that when I returned to the store and went inside, this Pharmacist, James announced out loud in a public area full of customers, my condition; asking me personal questions with no concern of my privacy.

My husband graciously called back where the lady Lynn, refused to give us her manager's name and used abusive and foul language with my husband and telling him that it must have been a new guy that was in training. I called my physician immediately after I got off the phone with her. He said that he had no requests and then while we were on the phone he said the refill request came through. My physician got the pharmacy number from me and said he was going to call. This is not the first time I have experienced abuse and neglect from this same store and same lady. She has not been made accountable and apparently the manager of the establishment will not do anything about the incompetent employee. I have had it with this company. I hope that people's complaints are not only heard but something can be done about it. Thank you for the opportunity.

I recently started taking an OTC generic proton pump inhibitor for acid reflux problems. My internist prescribed one 20 mg pill a day, with an Rx for 30 pills a month. I filled this prescription 2 or 3 times. He also referred me to an ear, nose, throat specialist, who subsequently prescribed double the dosage. For convenience and cost savings, the specialist wrote me a second prescription for 120 pills, a two month supply.

Today (1/22/2010), I phoned in a refill on the second (120 pill) Rx to CVS' automated system for the Winchester, MA CVS branch, keying in the Rx number on the bottle. The automated system repeated the prescription number for this second Rx correctly to me, which I then confirmed. However, when I went to pick up the prescription, I realized from the price and pill bottle size that they had filled the original prescription, which had been written by a different doctor under a completely different number than the one I had ordered on the phone.

It took the pharmacist (or aide, he was not the managing pharmacist on duty) 15 - 20 minutes on the computer to confirm that they had filled the wrong prescription. I then had to return to the store to pick up the corrected prescription.

It seems clear to me that someone in the pharmacy unilaterally made a decision to switch prescriptions. My insurance co-pays are structured so that I paid $15 for the 30 day supply ($15/30 pills = 50 cents a pill), but only $30 for the 60 day supply of 120 pills. ($30/120 pills = 25 cents a pill). So, from my expense, their margins are double for smaller prescriptions, but I have no idea how my insurer covers the balance.

I called back, spoke to the store manager and explained my situation. I was told the pharmacy is closed then they hang up again. This happened four times. All I wanted was for someone to leave a note or send an email to whoever is opening in the morning. I got hung up on once again. This is not the first time this has happened. It happened a few months back with **, only giving me 60 of 90 pills. This is outrageous for mistakes like this to happen not to mention the aggravation of time wasted fighting with employees.

The boxes that the medication comes in have the strength written in large print (and in differing colors for each dose) on the front and it is not difficult to determine which one you have. When I returned to the store and brought the mistake to their attention, the pharmacist did check the original prescription slip that they had on file, and it clearly said 25 mcg.

Aside from the easy-to-read packaging, several other things should have alerted the staff to the error - most importantly of which was that the first (wrong) prescription that the cashier rang up came to a total that was almost double the normal co-pay; I asked about this and was told that I would need to call my insurance company to ask why it was suddenly more expensive (they didn't know themselves). After returning for the correct dosage, they remarked that maybe that was why it rang up higher than usual.

On a slightly different note, CVS frequently runs out of this medication and forces customers to partially fill the amount and return for the rest before the month is over. This can cause problems with insurance billing and sometimes serious inconvenience for patients that are obligated to only use one pharmacy. While they were fixing the error, I was told that they were out of stock of the 25 mcg patches and could only give me one. I was also told that they have trouble keeping this medication in stock, and to call several days in advance to remind them to order it if they are out.

The mistake I encountered was no doubt a result of a hectic workday on the part of the staff - they seemed to be running behind and stressed, with dozens of customers in the store. I was told when calling in the medication several hours earlier that they were extremely busy, in fact, and might be late filling my request. A customer nearby said aloud that she had been waiting for an hour. I can understand when people are having a rough day, but this is one area that cannot afford errors such as the one I encountered.

I was ultimately extremely lucky to have observed this error before using the medication. The only consequence in truth was the time spent correcting the error, and the slight stress of the "what-if's" - I know full well that if this had been any other kind of medication (such as a bottle of pills) it probably would not have been an easy thing to spot. I hope that everyone checks and double-checks everything that they get from this and any other pharmacy - the consequences can be irreversible.

Thursday, 8/13/09, she called Caremark because her insulin was not here and she was about to run out. They apologized and told her it was being mailed overnight and she would have it Friday. It is now Saturday and no meds, and she is out of insulin. She called Caremark again today and was given a runaround. I called and she gave permission for them to speak to me. I was told the order is still processing and the soonest we can expect them to ship is Monday or Tuesday and it would be overnighted. After reading things here, I suspect it won't be. Meanwhile, she is out of insulin because of their incompetence.

I was put on the phone with Marvin in the resolution center after I informed the rep that sorry was not acceptable. I explained to him that this could be life-threatening. Over and over his answer was he was sorry about the inconvenience. His solution was for her to call her doctor and have a script written to fill at a local pharmacy, at her cost. I told him this was not acceptable. They have had more than enough time to get this taken care of had they contacted her in the first place. I was told that is not their policy. And again, they told me to contact her doctor. It's Saturday! The office is closed! Her sugars run in the 400-500 range without medication!

This is so completely unacceptable. I will be contacting the AG, state reps, anyone and everyone I can. This cannot and should not be allowed to continue. I am appalled that they even felt it was their place to question a doctor's order. It's prescribed because it is needed. I was shocked to see how many others this has happened to!

Somehow, they don't know to start this process until they have a frustrated and disappointed customer at the counter. This has occurred the past four or five times we have attempted to get a prescription there. Never mind the constant hassle of trying to get them to stop using child-proof lids for a 90-year-old whose hands find everything difficult, which causes yet more special trips back to the pharmacy. This time, the pharmacist curtly suggested we were "welcome to go to any other pharmacy," which is a not very nice way of saying you can drive 32 miles round trip to the next nearest drug store. It's not that we thought this of CVS when they first opened; they have taught us this. Nothing ever goes smoothly with them.

It is difficult enough getting around and caring for a 90-year-old without always having to push a rock uphill when it comes to every prescription. Yet they don't care about our time. They are thieves of time, and that is something no gift card can compensate one for. We have gone through days of pain when they couldn't fill a prescription and didn't tell us in time for it to come from elsewhere. This is very wearing on the entire family of caregivers. I wish we could avoid them, but as I say, there is no alternative. I don't know why they don't try. They just don't seem to have any motivation.

On 7-14-09 at 11:32 am, I called and they pharmacy clerk said it was in. I asked if it will be filled and she said yes, that they are currently working on it. My husband arrives at 2:47 pm to pick it up again and it's not ready. That he would have to wait 15-20 minutes to get it filled. Finally, at 3:08 pm, he was able to get it filled.

I let her know that my last bottle said I had one more, but that I would check with my doctor. In the meantime, she charged me for 3 months' worth of my other prescription and only gave me one month's worth, so I had to return and ask for the rest. I called my doctor's office the next morning when it opened and asked for an authorization, which they called in to CVS. I returned to the pharmacy that evening and asked for the additional prescription. She said that one was filled June 30 and had I picked that up yet? I said that was just there the day before looking for it (it was the same staff member). She said she thought I said there would be changes to it, which simply never happened. She then gave me the prescription, which was hanging on the pickup shelf, where it probably was the day before as well. While this isn't terrible, I am behind on my medication by 2 days, which can be quite serious depending on the medication.

I have received new medications and not been consulted by the pharmacist on duty. When I ask, they are too busy on the phone with God knows who to answer any questions. The worker bees of the department are left looking like fools as their superiors clearly make it known to everyone around that they make the calls and will decide who can be helped. A pharmacist will stand behind a counter reading magazines as 5 to 10 clients wait in line and offer no help or assistance to sales staff. When asked question from the line, they will play passive aggressive and either make things more complicated or flat out offer no help at all. How do you make money? I have confidence that your staff does not realize the seriousness of their jobs. This is serious stuff, I like to refer to it as life and death when drugs and medications are involved. They do have degrees and proper DEA qualifications to be dealing with the chemicals they issue, right? I, many times, think not!

I have decided to move to a local family owned pharmacy and in my conversation with the owner, he stated that CVS is by far the worst and most of his customers have come to him as CVS is very incompetent and unable to handle simple task across the board. I didn't become a chemist on purpose while I was in college as I made the wrong assumption that a pharmacist would be able to address my medication needs. CVS has definitely made it clear I will need a degree as being given drugs in a very informal and nonchalant way is the future and if I want to stay alive, it would be the more prudent path to follow.

I have had serious thoughts about having my attorney contact the DEA on this matter and this store specifically as someone at your company needs to be responsible for the actions that are not being taken by staff. There are not words for how embarrassed and ashamed you should be over your ethics and business practices. Karma will have its day with all involved with your company.

I then began using CVS in Villa Rica, GA and the same thing there. Meds were filled incorrectly, the pharmacy staff, collectively, is the most rude, hateful and humiliating people that hold public jobs. They seemed to think they were my doctor. In front of many customers on several occasions, they embarrassed me by questioning my RX's and told me they could not fill my meds until speaking with my doctor. This happened on 3 occasions, each time my doctor told them to fill my scripts as directed but they seemed as though they were punishing me still for what happened in the neighboring town. My doctors (2) have gotten fed up with CVS making it so hard on me and told me to change drug stores. Both physicians told me they did not like CVS and this behavior was common. They should be more careful with regard to patient privacy.

I have also contacted them on many occasions regarding loud, detailed and personal information being revealed while they were communicating their rude reasons and problems each time. This is habitual with this company and until I found this website, I thought it was very personal and I have for years thought it was just me. Honestly, I am treated for major depression and take many meds for this and their behavior has greatly affected me in serious ways in the past. It is just a relief to find that this is a larger problem than just mine. I just thought I was being punished for reporting the Bremen Store for filling my meds incorrectly and giving me someone else's med and abusing the extra care buck program.