CVS hires 15,000 new workers in preparation for fall coronavirus wave

‘We’re estimating a much greater need for trained pharmacy technicians this year’

Now Hiring sign at a CVS Pharmacy during the coronavirus outbreak in San Francisco (AP)

CVS is set to immediately hire 15,000 new employees in preparation for a hike in coronavirus cases during flu season and across winter.

The company announced on Monday that it will hire more than 10,000 new full- and part-time licensed pharmacy technician roles at CVS Pharmacy locations, CNBC first reported.

The news comes as health experts fear that America is staring down the barrel of a third wave of coronavirus infections which are due to coincide with flu season.  

“Additional team members typically are needed every flu season,” said Lisa Bisaccia, Chief Human Resources Officer, CVS Health.  

“However, we’re estimating a much greater need for trained pharmacy technicians this year given the continued presence of Covid-19 in our communities.”  

The company said they will be aiming to fill the positions as soon as possible.

Health experts have issued warnings that the upcoming flu season mixing with the ongoing coronavirus could prove disastrous for public health on many fronts.

“Our worry has been that we would see a fall wave, that we’d see a big resurgence in the fall,” Justin Lessler, an associate professor of epidemiology at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health told CNBC.

“And that has really been something I think all of us in the public health community have been worried about for a while.”

Dr William Schaffner, an epidemiologist at Vanderbilt University, told the broadcaster that the country is set to experience a “substantial third wave” of infections that will be complicated by the oncoming flu season.

“During the summer, people went indoors for air conditioning, but they did spend more of their time outdoors. Nonetheless, it spread as people became lax in their attention to social distancing and mask wearing,” he said. “As far as I can tell, that’s growing.”

CVS expects to administer 18 million flu shots this year in an attempt to keep flu infections under control, a jump from the 11 million it administered last year, CVS spokesman Joe Goode told the outlet.

Dr Robert Redfield, director of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), has long urged that the administration of flu vaccine’s this winter could be instrumental to saving lives amidst the pandemic.

“This fall, before the seasonal circulation of influenza increase, I encourage the American people to be prepared and to embrace flu vaccination with confidence for yourself, your families in the communities,” he said.

CVS Health has substantially expanded its staffing and services during the pandemic, with the US having recorded more than 8.19 million coronavirus cases and 220,000 deaths since the outbreak began in March.

The company announced in the same month that it would fill a variety of 50,000 full-time, part-time and temporary roles across the country as the nation tried to grapple with the pandemic.