CVS Rebuilt, Reopened After Storm

It’s not exactly a “man-bites-dog” story, but it is a bit unusual to be reporting about a major pharmacy chain opening a store. After all, in recent years, hundreds of such stores have been shuttered, the victims of a variety of factors, including their own over-expansions and major changes in the ways pharmacies are reimbursed for the drugs they dispense.

As to the opening: it involved rebuilding a store on the site of one destroyed by a major storm. This took place in Hendersonville, N.C., where one of the town’s three CVS stores was severely damaged by Hurricane Helene in September of last year. And now, the pharmacy on S. Main St. has been rebuilt and reopened.

The store, CVS said, features an expanded pharmacy and private consultation/vaccination area, an improved in-store delivery pickup area and an updated layout, décor and fixtures.

“From the day Hurricane Helene devastated the area, our commitment to the community has been unwavering at our other Hendersonville locations and throughout the Western Carolinas,” Maureen Cormier, SVP, Field Operations East, CVS Pharmacy said in a news release.  “I want to thank our teams who have worked tirelessly to reopen this store quickly so we could once again serve the health, wellness and pharmacy care needs of Hendersonville residents at this store.”

Government officials thanked CVS for its efforts on behalf of the local citizenry. “This reopening is a testament to the hard work and dedication of so many, and it will no doubt help improve residents’ access to needed, life-giving medications,” said Matt Calabria, Director, the Governor’s Recovery Office for Western North Carolina.