CVS Health To Add 15,000 Staffers As It Prepares For Flu Season, COVID-19 Vaccine Rollout

CVS Health Corp CVS said Monday it plans to add 15,000 staffers on a priority basis, Bloomberg reports. A major portion of new hires would include licensed pharmacists, as the company prepares for the flu season, along with ramping up COVID-19 testing.

What Happened: CVS is also gearing up for possible COVID-19 vaccine administration, according to Bloomberg. 

In September, the Trump Administration approved state-licensed pharmacists to administer FDA authorized COVID-19 vaccines to patients aged three or older. The approval also covers registered pharmacy interns under close supervision by qualified pharmacists.

Two-thirds of the new CVS joiners would comprise of pharmacy technicians, both full-time and part-time, with expertise in administering tests and dispensing medications, according to Bloomberg.

On Saturday, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services in the U.S. gave the approval for CVS and retail pharmacist company Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc WBA to provide U.S. nursing home residents and workers COVID-19 shots at zero cost — Bloomberg Law reports.

Why Does It Matter: Till now, CVS Health Corp has conducted close to 5 million tests and operates over 4,000 drive through testing sites in the U.S., CNBC noted.

Since the pandemic outbreak began, the healthcare company is on a hiring spree. In March, the company announced plans to add 50,000 jobs across different departments across the country. In addition to medical professions, the recruitment drive also planned to hire drivers for home delivery, distribution center employees, store associates, and customer service professionals. As per Bloomberg, CVS has recruited close to 76,000 personnel since March.

Price Action: After a 0.46% gain during trading hours, CVS stock gained a marginal 0.27% in the after-hours to close at $59.75.

Photo by Mike Mozart on Flickr