US PHARMACY giant, Walgreens, has been hit with fines of close to $100,000 by the Maine Board of Pharmacy.
The fines related to 15 incidents where the corporation's stores either failed to have a pharmacist in charge on duty, or reducing stores' opening hours without notifying the Board.
The fines ranged from $730 to $26,000, with the the company's pharmacy in Auburn landing the largest fine, after it reportedly failed to meet the State's requirement for pharmacies to open for 40 hours a week for 18 weeks between Oct 2021 and Apr 2022.
The store was found to have opened for just 16 hours during one week in mid-Dec 2021.
Walgreens reported that workforce shortages were the primary factor behind the issues, noting that its efforts to move pharmacists between stores were insufficient.
CVS was also fined $19,800 by the Board for four similar breaches.
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