BY JEFF LAMM
SPECIAL TO NEWJERSEYNEWSROOM.COM
NEWARK – Acting Attorney General John J. Hoffman, the New Jersey Division of Consumer Affairs, and the State Board of Pharmacy today announced a settlement with CVS Pharmacy Inc. in which the company will pay more than $500,000 and will take steps to protect New Jersey consumers from purchasing medications, infant formula, or other items if they are exposed to elevated temperatures for prolonged periods of time.
The settlement follows two separate 2012 incidents in which CVS pharmacies in Scotch Plains and Clark experienced air conditioning outages for multiple days. The stores continued to operate after inside temperatures exceeded the maximum recommended for the storage of drugs and other items for extended periods of time.
Potentially affected items were sold between June 20, 2012 and July 27, 2012 at the CVS at 514 Park Avenue in Scotch Plains; and between July 10, 2012 and July 20, 2012 at the CVS at 60 Westfield Avenue in Clark.
Certain medications may lose effectiveness if exposed to elevated temperatures for prolonged periods of time. No injuries or illnesses resulting from the 2012 incidents have been reported.
“We have taken an incident in which the public was exposed to potential harm, and turned it into an opportunity to create model practices for pharmacies across New Jersey,” Acting Attorney General John J. Hoffman said. “Under this settlement, CVS will keep a close eye on the temperatures at its New Jersey pharmacies, and will act immediately to remove affected medications before they are sold to the public. Failure to do so will be punishable under New Jersey’s laws governing consumer fraud and pharmacy operations.” more
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