CVS slammed for insensitive response to report detailing pharmacist’s death

During the severe workforce crisis in 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, a CVS pharmacist lost her life as she waited for someone to cover her shift. Ashleigh Anderson, 41, died after suffering from a heart attack during her stressful work hours at the pharmacy. Before her tragic death, Anderson texted her longtime boyfriend, “I think I am having a heart attack.”
A CVS store in Canton, Ohio, was recently slapped with a $250,000 fine for excessive understaffing. As the stressful work conditions of the American pharmacy made headlines, a report detailing Anderson’s death was published by USA Today. The report highlights the crushing pressure Anderson and CVS employees deal with, especially during the pandemic.
According to the report, Anderson could recognise the symptoms of a heart attack but was unable to leave the store as there was no one to cover her. While struggling with the symptoms, she texted her boyfriend, Joe Bowman, “It’s the jaw pain that worries me. Didn’t realise that was a symptom.”
Bowman suggested she take a “long lunch and decompress.” However, there was no one to cover for Anderson, who was described as a “rising star” by her co-workers. If she had left during the shift, then she would have had to close the store, which could further push back the pending prescriptions list.
Little did she know that her decision to wait for a co-worker would lead to her death. Her last text message before her death was to Bowman, “Bob is coming now. I will go to Schneck here. Hopefully it’s nothing and I will come back to work.” 15 minutes later, she collapsed on the floor.
Despite CPR attempts by a customer, who happened to be a nurse, jolts from a defibrillator and three rounds of epinephrine from first responders, Anderson didn’t wake up. According to the outlet, healthcare experts say that she could have most likely survived had she rushed to the ER upon facing the first signs of a heart attack.
Following the report by USA Today, CVS Chief Pharmacy Officer Prem Shah shared a statement saying that the company was “deeply saddened” about Anderson’s death. In the statement, Shah noted that CVS would make “sustained investments to provide a more balanced, positive work environment.”
He further added that new technologies would be introduced across pharmacies to “help balance workload, maintain staffing hours even during slower periods, increase wages and bonuses and create a more sustainable reimbursement model.” Shah’s statement has been heavily criticised by social media users as “insensitive.”
A pharmacist on X, formerly Twitter user shared a picture of Shah’s statement along with the message, “The absolutely tone deaf message that went out this morning to all CVS teams in response to the USA Today piece about Ashleigh Anderson.” Several users joined the conversation, with one saying, “Here’s a $400 bonus to forget about it!” Another user wrote, “I read that last paragraph as “ we will replace most of you with automation”