I have been going to this cvs for pharmacy services for about a year. I guess it was mainly out of convenience since it's on my way home, but after a series of negative experiences at this location I decided to move my prescriptions over to the rite aid nearby on 17th st.
My first problem is the super sketchy crowd of homeless people who wander in, out, and around the store. Some come in shoeless. Others come in smelling like death and urine. And some are very aggressive panhandlers that I'd be worried could get violent really quickly if they are denied your change and they happen to be in a fighting mood. Additionally I'll find people panhandling right outside the store trying to raise money to "save the polar bears" or something like that, only to see the same person come inside the location to buy alcohol once they've raised enough from the easily duped rich Newport women in yoga pants that stop by this cvs after their workouts.
Next issues I have are with the pharmacy.
First, I have two forms of med insurance, so I would always ask the pharmacist whenever I dropped off a medication to please use the insurance that would have me paying the least out of pocket. The pharmacist assured me they would, and I assumed they had been using that insurance. One day I went to a rite aid and asked the same of their pharmacist, and they must have actually checked to see which insurance covered my meds the most because my copay went from nearly $70 at cvs to $10 at rite aid when they actually used my other insurance. When I confronted the cvs pharmacist about this, he did not seem to care and tried to say it was my fault because I didn't tell them which insurance was cheaper. But how could I have told them that when they're the ones with that info and said that they could and would use whichever insurance made my meds cheaper? So frustrating and annoying that I had been wasting so much money paying much more for my meds than I should've been for the longest time.
My next problem with the pharmacy was when I had a friend come visit me from Texas, and she needed a prescription filled that her doctor in TX had written for her. The cvs pharmacist looked at the prescription and said he'd have to have the TX doctor call to confirm the Rx, saying it was a new state law. Well it was already 7:30 pacific time meaning it was 9:30 in Texas, so there was nothing that could be done that night. Anyway, something about the way the pharmacist was acting made me question whether or not he'd made this policy up to avoid having to do a little extra work because it's an out of state Rx. So we went to the rite aid down the street, and they filled the out of state prescription that evening with no calls to doctors or any other hassle. The cvs pharmacist lied to get out of having to do a bit of extra work. So ridiculous.
The final issue that made me part ways with this cvs for good is that they never seem to have my Rx in stock. And it's not like I'm using a rare or especially expensive medicine. It's a very common, cheap, generic medication that should be in stock at all times, especially if the pharmacy knows that I get monthly refills for it.
So I've said goodbye to this cvs and I'm happy to be moving on. They can keep their lazy pharmacists and barefoot smelly homeless people, and I'll go to the rite aid down the street, where they always have my meds and you don't have to deal with the crazies and panhandlers like you would at this cvs location.
I hope cvs will look at reviews for this location and clean house there with better trained pharmacists and maybe some form of security to keep the aggressive homeless from accosting you as you enter or leave the store. read more