The widening debate over vaccine mandates in the U.S. and recent moves to get rid of them for schoolchildren in Florida are pushing some states to take steps to protect vaccines for children and adults.

Last week, KPRC 2 revealed how a closed CVS store in Cypress has become a massive illegal dumping site.

A former CVS parking lot in Sugar Land has become an illegal dumping ground and homeless encampment, raising safety and health concerns among nearby residents.

As CVS continues to scale its brick-and-mortar presence—closing more than 900 stores nationwide over the past two years—some of the shuttered locations are now creating a new kind of headache for Houston-area communities.

CVS and Express Scripts are asking a federal judge to block an Arkansas law prohibiting pharmacy benefit managers from owning or operating pharmacies in the state.

Deputy constables are investigating a break-in at a CVS Pharmacy on Louetta Road in northwest Harris County, which occurred just after 6 a.m. on Thursday.

CVS Health hiked its 2025 forecast above Wall Street’s expectations after improving Medicare benefits contributed to a better-than-expected first quarter.

Dude was probably not expecting his night to go the way it did.

The unions representing more than 7,000 CVS workers in Southern California have reached a tentative agreement on a contract.

Through the darkness of Beryl shines a hero

Rural pharmacies can be a touchstone for their communities.

CVS Health missed first-quarter expectations and chopped its 2024 outlook more than a dollar below Wall Street’s forecast.

Busy Medicare Advantage businesses have CVS Health and other insurance providers spooked about the new year.

SmileDirectClub is shutting down — just months after the struggling teeth-straightening company filed for bankruptcy protection.

CVS Health is introducing changes to how its prescription drug pricing model works, and that could lead to some savings for customers starting next year.

Medications are in short supply for several reasons including manufacturing delays, supply chain issues, and other pandemic-related complications.

Two brothers residing in Houston have been sentenced for their roles in large-scale organized retail crime schemes that involved Walgreens and CVS, the United States Department of Justice announced Wednesday.

Fall vaccination season is in full swing, with health officials urging both an updated COVID-19 shot and flu vaccine for most everyone.

At Texas Children’s Hospital, doctors said there are currently hospitalized babies with RSV and COVID.While CVS MinuteClinic practitioners say the main viruses driving patients into their clinics are COVID and strep throat.

CVS Health topped second-quarter expectations, but the health care giant’s profit sank as pricing pressure hurt its drugstores and a jump in care use hit the insurance side.

An Angleton woman is changing how she picks up her prescription medication after claiming her local CVS pharmacy gave her the wrong medication.

Big money is pouring into primary care clinics as the nation’s health care giants hunt for ways to cut costs by keeping people healthy.

Attorneys general in 20 conservative-led states are warning CVS and Walgreens that they could face legal consequences if they sell abortion pills by mail in those states.

A new apartment complex that will feature affordable housing units for seniors is coming to the Galleria area.

Most retail and grocery stores are closed for the holiday, but pharmacies like Walgreens and CVS are keeping their doors open for people who have waited until the last minute to shop.

Caring for sick children has become extra stressful for many U.S. parents recently due to shortages of Children’s Tylenol and other medicines.

Charity at the checkout. Stores ask you to round up to help someone else in need. Where does that money end up and who benefits from your donation?

Retired NFL star Terrell Owens said a fight caught on camera in which he punched a man in a CVS parking lot was the result of an “aggressor” threatening him and a fan he was talking to at the California store.

CVS Health booked a third-quarter loss of more than $3 billion after setting aside money for a potential opioid litigation settlement but still beat expectations and raised its 2022 forecast.

CVS will drop the price on store-branded menstrual products nationwide on Thursday, and has already begun paying the sales tax for such products in some states.

By the end of October, you’ll be able to purchase hearing aids in a pharmacy like Walgreens or CVS. Electronic retailers like Best Buy will also have some in stores.

A federal judge in Cleveland has awarded $650 million in damages to two Ohio counties that sued CVS, Walgreens and Walmart over the way the national pharmacy chains distributed opioids to their communities.

CVS Health is reminding Americans that it is more important than ever to stay current with vaccinations and other routine health care needs. By getting an annual flu shot, ensuring COVID-19 boosters are up to date, and taking other proactive preventative health measures, individuals and families can help protect themselves against seasonal flu and other illnesses and do their part to help protect the overall health of their community.

New U.S. recommendations call for three home tests for people exposed to COVID-19 to improve accuracy.

The new chief health equity officer at CVS Health hopes she will have more influence in fixing care disparities before they land patients in the hospital.

A hearing began Tuesday in federal court in Cleveland that will help a judge determine how much CVS, Walgreens and Walmart should pay two northeast Ohio counties to help them ease the continuing opioid crisis.

COVID-19 vaccines and tests for the virus continue to boost CVS Health and the health care giant raised its annual forecast after a strong first quarter.

Watch as Lauren Kelly chats with H.E.A.R.T. Interim Executive Director, Seth Malin all about this wonderful initiative.

There’s a variety of supplies out of stock in stores across the country, and now that cold and flu season is upon us, it’s adding to the shipping and manufacturing headaches with over-the-counter medications.

It’s been a busy and sometimes frustrating day at COVID testing sites with the holiday surge now leading to a surge in testing at many places.

Christmas Eve and day fall on Friday and Saturday this year.

A rush of vaccine-seeking customers and staff shortages are squeezing drugstores around the country.

Pharmacies have lost in a groundbreaking trial in Ohio over the toll of opioids, but there's no assurance the results will hold up on appeal.

Holiday season could strain COVID-19 home test supplies as more Americans try to screen themselves before Thanksgiving and other family gatherings.

Cities and counties in the U.S. that want to hold pharmacies accountable for the opioid crisis are closely watching a federal trial that’s coming to a close.

One of the four retail pharmacy companies on trial for their alleged roles in fostering an opioid crisis in two Ohio counties announced Friday it had settled a lawsuit with 10 government entities in the state.

A bellwether trial is set to start Monday in federal court in Cleveland to determine whether retail pharmacy chains are liable for costs related to the opioid crisis in two Ohio counties.

CVS Health is looking to hire more than 3,000 new employees across its Texas stores during a one-day national career event.

CVS began offering third doses of the Pfizer and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines to eligible immunocompromised patients Saturday.

Target said Tuesday it is offering a $5 coupon to all customers and employees who receive their vaccination at a CVS at Target location, for in-store purchases of $5 or more.

Easter is Sunday, April 4.

(AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez, File)HOUSTON – CVS Health announced Thursday that it will begin to administer COVID-19 vaccines to eligible populations starting Sunday, March 14, at 74 additional CVS Pharmacy locations across Texas. These additional retail locations bring to 180 total CVS Pharmacy locations administering a COVID-19 vaccine in Texas. Vaccines at participating CVS Pharmacy locations in Texas will be available to individuals meeting state eligibility criteria, as well as K-12 teachers and staff and childcare workers. Patients must register in advance at CVS.com or through the CVS Pharmacy app, and people without online access can contact CVS Customer Service: (800) 746-7287. Vaccines will eventually be available at CVS Pharmacy locations throughout the country subject to product availability, with the capacity to administer 20 to 25 million shots per month.

HOUSTON – Starting Thursday, CVS Health will begin offering COVID-19 vaccines to those who are eligible (in the 1B Phase) at 47 more select CVS Pharmacies in Texas. Approximately 15 of them will be in the greater Houston area, CVS says. Nearly 58,500 doses of vaccine are being made available for the 47 additional Texas sites through the Federal Retail Pharmacy Program, bringing the total CVS Pharmacy COVID-19 vaccination locations to nearly 100 statewide. AdVaccines are offered on an appointment-only basis at CVS.com or through the CVS Pharmacy app. Bay CityHoustonHuntsvilleJacinto CityKatyLa MarqueLivingstonPasadenaSeabrookTomballAs more supply becomes available through the federal program, the company will expand to additional states while increasing the number of stores offering vaccinations.

Another first this Friday, the Michael E. DeBakey V.A. Medical Center in Houston started facilitating a new vaccination method for veterans: first come, first served. “This is really important to us, we are vaccinating America’s heroes,” said associate director of the Michael E. DeBakey Medical Center, Chris Myhaver. The line stretched for miles for the first-come, first-served veteran vaccinations, but Navy Veteran Earl George did not mind. AdIf you are an eligible veteran and want to get vaccinated, the Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center drive-thru vaccination clinic opens at 7:30 a.m. on Saturday.

HOUSTON – If you’re eligible and looking to get the COVID-19 vaccine, you’ll be able to schedule an appointment with CVS Health beginning Thursday. Vaccinations at 70 pharmacy locations in Texas, including an undisclosed number in Houston, will begin the next day on Friday. The scheduling system will open on Feb. 11,” Monica Prinzing with CVS Health Corporate Communications said. Because active stores will change regularly based on vaccine supply, CVS Health will not provide a full list of participating locations,” Prinzing added. H-E-BAd“H-E-B Pharmacies are prepared to receive new allotments of COVID-19 vaccine at any time from the government.

SHENANDOAH, Texas – Memorial Hermann and Conroe ISD are working together to vaccinate nearly 7,000 people in Montgomery County. Their daughter, who lives with them, just had a baby, so Danny and Donna Driscoll wanted the vaccine in a hurry. Memorial Hermann teamed with Conroe ISD to administer about 7,000 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine at the Woodforest Bank Stadium Friday and Saturday. That’s an honor for us to do that through this vaccine clinic,” said Conroe ISD Superintendent Dr. Curtis Null. Dr. Null said they plan to do the second doses of the vaccine at the same site in three weeks.

The event is hosted by Memorial Hermann, along with Montgomery County, the City of Shenandoah and Conroe Independent School District. Officials said in a news release that the vaccine supply is limited and appointments will be scheduled on a first-come, first-served basis until the available appointments are full. Memorial Hermann will administer approximately 6,400 COVID-19 vaccines at this clinic. “The speed at which we can move through additional populations will be determined by continued and increased vaccine supply. We appreciate the community’s patience and understanding during this time and pledge to keep things moving just as quickly and efficiently as we possibly can.”For the latest information regarding Memorial Hermann’s COVID-19 vaccine distribution process, go here.

HOUSTON – CVS has announced pharmacies will begin to administer COVID-19 vaccines to eligible populations at 70 CVS Pharmacy locations across Texas Friday, Feb. 12. For CVS Pharmacy locations that will begin to offer COVID-19 vaccinations on Feb. 12, appointments were supposed to become available for booking as early as Feb. 9 as stores receive shipments of the vaccine. Participating pharmacies are in communities throughout the state, including Houston, San Antonio, Abilene, Amarillo, Beaumont, Brownsville, El Paso, Laredo, Lubbock, Midland, Plano, and Waco. As the supply becomes available, the company said it will expand to more locations and offer additional appointments. Patients must register in advance at CVS.com or through the CVS Pharmacy app, and people without online access can contact CVS customer service: (800) 746-7287.

Starting next week, 1 million doses will be distributed to some 6,500 pharmacies across the country, the White House said. The administration is also boosting by 500,000 the weekly allocation of vaccines sent directly to states and territories for the coming weeks, up to 10.5 million. It is allowing state and local governments to receive additional federal dollars to cover previously incurred expenses relating to the pandemic. The number of participating pharmacies and the allocation of vaccines are expected to accelerate as drug makers increase production. The Biden administration has sought to increase certainty to state governments on their upcoming allocations to streamline deliveries and prevent stockpiling of second doses for the two-dose regimens.

The CDC looked at more than 11,000 nursing homes and skilled nursing facilities that had at least one vaccination clinic between the middle of December and the middle of January. Data previously showed that people who work in nursing homes and long-term care facilities get flu vaccines at lower rates than other health-care workers. Surveys suggest that long-term care workers are skeptical the shots work and don't think viruses spread easily from them to the people they care for. The government tasked CVS and Walgreens with administering the shots to long-term care homes in nearly every state. Each vaccine requires two shots a few weeks apart, and CVS and Walgreens say they have wrapped up first-dose clinics in nursing homes.

More shots have gone into people’s arms per capita across West Virginia than in any other state, with at least 7.4% of the population receiving the first of two shots, according to state data. “Little old West Virginia, that was thought of for hundreds of years, you know, as a place where maybe we were backward or dark or dingy,” Justice said last week. Instead, it turns out that “West Virginia has been the diamond in the rough,” Justice said on CBS’ "Face the Nation" on Sunday. The federal partnership involving both companies would have allowed Washington officials to dictate the terms of nursing home vaccinations, said Marty Wright, the head of the West Virginia Health Care Association, which represents health care companies. The governor wants in-person learning to resume at as many schools as possible by Tuesday, long before teachers will have received their second vaccine doses.

They plan to vaccinate thousands of residents and workers. CVS has set up several dropoff locations to get vaccines to nursing homes faster. “We have selected by geographic need select depot stores, doesn’t mean we would actually administer them here, these are just holding points for the vaccines. So here’s the depot store and around these depot stores will be long-term care facilities so we’re trying to compress time and distance,” adds Fratamico. CVS is also in need of more workers to help in this vaccine administration process that will likely last for several more months.

Plans for rationing care are not in place yet, but they need to be established because “the worst is yet to come,” said Los Angeles County's health services director, Dr. Christina Ghaly. Until then, four hospitals run by Los Angeles County are weighing what to do if they cannot treat everyone because of a shortage of beds or staffers. Some hospitals have canceled non-essential elective surgeries, such as hip replacements, that might take up beds that could soon be needed for COVID-19 patients. Scientists are working to determine whether the strain spreads more easily, said Moncef Slaoui, the chief science adviser for the U.S. government’s COVID-19 vaccine effort. Bill Lee on Sunday announced new social gathering restrictions while still refusing to implement a mask mandate despite pleas from front-line health care workers.

CVS Health and Walgreens on Friday are beginning to offer COVID-19 vaccinations for residents and staff at those long-term care facilities, making them among the first Americans to receive the shots, CNBC reported. Walgreens said its pharmacists will administer the shots at nursing homes and assisted living facilities in Ohio, Connecticut and Florida. CVS said it will provide them at facilities in Ohio and Connecticut. Both companies will expand to facilities in other states next week. For more, go to CNBC’s full report.

HOUSTON – Some of the major pharmacies such as CVS, Walgreens and HEB in Houston plan to have vaccines available to the general public by springtime. Families could be making their way to their local pharmacy for a COVID-19 vaccine by March or early April. HEB has been working on plans for COVID-19 vaccine distributions for months. CVS stated that they plan to have COVID-19 vaccines available to the public by March, as well, at every one of their locations. Once it’s available to the public at CVS, Walgreens or HEB, it will be at no cost to customers.

Dr. Michelle Chester draws the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine into a syringe at Long Island Jewish Medical Center, Monday, Dec. 14, 2020, in the Queens borough of New York. Even with vaccination, you'll still need to take precautions, like wearing a mask and social distancing, health officials say. Once doses are widely available, people should be able to use an existing government website, www.vaccinefinder.org, to find COVID-19 shots. The panel also suggests avoiding getting other vaccinations for two weeks before and after a COVID-19 shot. COVID-19 vaccines can’t be mixed and matched, so if a second dose is needed, providers will be checking to make sure you get the right one.

It’s not every day that the Big Man in Red makes a visit, so it’s easy to forget some things in the excitement. Most area grocery stores and retailers will not operate on Christmas Day, but there are a handful of options for the forgetful. Scroll below to see the operating hours for some of the Houston area’s most popular retailers and grocery stores. ALDI: ClosedCostco: ClosedCentral Market: ClosedCVS: 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. (Hours vary by location)Food Town: ClosedH-E-B: ClosedLowe’s: ClosedKroger: ClosedHome Depot: ClosedRandalls: 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.Sam’s Club: ClosedStarbucks: Most locations will open on Christmas. Call ahead for specific hours.

HOUSTON – Local pharmacies were getting prepared to start COVID-19 immunizations. The CDC has partnered with Walgreens and CVS to vaccinate residents of nursing homes and assisted living facilities. When vaccines are available for wider distribution, all CVS pharmacies will have them. “We have 285 pharmacies, we have over 800 people who can give shots and we can give our a flu shot today,” said McClelland. Pharmacies said they have qualified people to give vaccinations and they’ve visited nursing and long-term care facilities in the past to vaccinate patients.

HOUSTON – CVS Health said this week that it is recruiting qualified candidates to fill 15,000 jobs across the nation. More than 10,000 of the new roles are for full- and part-time licensed pharmacy technicians at CVS Pharmacy locations and will be filled as soon as possible, helping increase support for patients and fellow pharmacy professionals. Working under the direct supervision of a licensed pharmacist, CVS Health pharmacy technicians process prescriptions, dispense medications, provide information to customers or health professionals and perform administrative tasks. They also administer COVID-19 tests at more than 4,000 drive-thru testing sites at select CVS Pharmacy locations across the country. Candidates for these opportunities can apply online and take an online virtual job tryout.

Under the voluntary program, trained staff from CVS and Walgreens would deliver the vaccines to each nursing home and administer shots. The nation has 15,000-16,000 nursing homes, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The use of retail chain pharmacies has prompted some concerns, because nursing homes typically deal with specialized pharmacies and not the big drugstores catering to consumers. Mango said the plan would accommodate nursing homes that want to continue to work with specialized pharmacies. HHS Secretary Alex Azar said the program will “provide convenient and free vaccination to residents of nursing homes across America.”

David Ige said Wednesday that starting Oct. 15, travelers arriving from out of state may bypass a 14-day quarantine requirement if they test negative for COVID-19. Travelers will have to take the test within 72 hours before their flight arrives in the islands. Earlier this year Ige planned to start a pre-travel testing program on Aug. 1 only to have to postpone it as COVID-19 cases spiked on the U.S. mainland and in Hawaii. Hawaii leaders are hopeful that pre-travel testing will encourage people to return to a Hawaii in a way that keeps residents safe. “I want to emphasize that this pre-travel testing will allow us to add a greater element of safety for travel into our state,” Ige said at a news conference.

(AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez, File)CLEVELAND Lawsuits filed by two Ohio counties against retail pharmacy chains claiming their opioid dispensing practices flooded communities with pain pills and were a a public nuisance can continue, a federal judge in Cleveland has determined. U.S. District Judge Dan Polster rejected the pharmacy chains' motion to dismiss the suits, ruling Thursday that the Ohio law does indeed apply to Lake and Trumbull counties' nuisance claims. Polster is overseeing more than 2,000 lawsuits filed by local governments, tribal authorities and others against companies they blame for fueling an opioid epidemic that has killed 430,000 people since 2000. The two northeast Ohio counties' lawsuits against CVS, Walgreens, Rite Aid, Walmart and Giant Eagle were the first to target retail pharmacy chains as both distributors and dispensers of painkillers. Those claims seek damages from the retail chains as distributors of painkillers but not as dispensers.

HOUSTON A new rapid coronavirus testing site is opening in north Houston on Friday, and its free. The site is located at the North Shepherd Community Clinic at 5012 North Shepherd Drive. Results will be provided at the clinic and will not require people to wait days to determine whether they have coronavirus. The testing site is provided through a partnership between the Ibn Sina Foundation and CVS Health. A map of other testing sites across the Houston area can be found here.

Walgreens plans to open full-service doctors' offices in hundreds of its stores across the US during the next five years. It's part of a bigger effort by the drugstore chain to become a one-stop shop for health care. Walgreens Boots Alliance is partnering with health care company VillageMD to create the 500 to 700 primary care clinics. Walgreens' clinics will open in at least 30 metro area markets during the next five years and then 20 more markets, said Morry Smulevitz, a Walgreens spokesperson. Each clinic will occupy about 25% of an average Walgreens store, Smulevitz said.

The Arizona Department of Health Services posted on its website Monday another 1,104 cases of COVID-19 and eight additional deaths, bringing the statewide total number of coronavirus cases to 36,705 and related deaths to 1,194. Doug Ducey to take steps like requiring masks in public to slow a major increase in new coronavirus cases that has made the state a national hot spot. Arizona hospitals were treating a record number of coronavirus patients Tuesday amid a surge of new cases. The state's Health Services Department reported a record number of emergency room visits for the virus as well. #MaskUpAZ.During a news briefing last week where he pushed back on questions about a mask mandate, the governor insisted that the state's hospitals, while filling up, had the capacity to treat any expected surge in virus patients.

HOUSTON – The Galleria mall closed Sunday to the public amid protests in Houston, according to a security source at The Galleria. The Galleria, Houston, TexasProfit > People pic.twitter.com/mjR4Uxadhf — Luis M. (@itszLu) May 31, 2020On Saturday night, a video shared online shows looters attempting to break into Forever 21, which has an exterior window display located on Westheimer Road. they really tried to loot forever 21 @ the galleria in Houston pic.twitter.com/zVfKmCrNzu — 𐐪𐑂 (@AINNJEL555) May 31, 2020Another video shared online shows people breaking into a Verizon store in Houston. pic.twitter.com/ztzVMIHbHR — Jared 📷 (@HeWent_2Jared) May 30, 2020NorthPark Center and Galleria Dallas are among other malls closed on Sunday following a night of violent protests in downtown Dallas and Deep Ellum, Dallas Morning News reports. Other Houston businesses taking additional security measures include Madewell in Highland Village and Dior in the River Oaks District.

HOUSTON – One of the drugs that are showing promise to treat coronavirus is one that many Americans already use every day for other ailments. While this drug could play a role in treating coronavirus patients, there are many people who depend on it beyond the virus. I’m concerned about the price going up and I’m concerned about its availability.”Wednesday, New York started doing hydroxychloroquine trials on coronavirus patients. Advice for people who take hydroxychloroquineThe Arthritis Foundation released a list of suggestions for patients who may be worried about a drug shortage. If you cannot get your hydroxychloroquine prescription filled, you can report it to the FDA at drugshortages@fda.hhs.govResearchers are also working on a possible Coronavirus vaccine.