Prepositions and drugs

Good evening, 919 Gang.It’s possible not everyone will agree with this ruling: 

 

“ An authority on the English language has set us free from the tethers of what many have long regarded as a grammatical no-no. Or has it? 

The answer depends on how you side with a declaration from Merriam-Webster: 

"It is permissible in English for a preposition to be what you end a sentence with," the dictionary publisher said in a post shared on Instagram last week. "The idea that it should be avoided came from writers who were trying to align the language with Latin, but there is no reason to suggest ending a sentence with a preposition is wrong.  … “ 

https://www.npr.org/2024/02/27/1233663125/grammar-preposition-sentence-rule-myth-merriam-webster-dictionary 

 

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GLENN GRANT writes: 

Glad to read Carl Larsen's post about his experience with CVS. My two cents: 

I only shop at drugstores when absolutely necessary, not just because of their high prices, but also usually poor customer service caused by inadequate staffing. For the past few years, I have relied almost exclusively on Amazon Prime and Amazon Pharmacy for my OTC and prescription drugs. Items such as aspirin and ibuprofen are very inexpensive in Amazon Prime, and can sometimes be delivered to my door the same day. Prescriptions are usually filled and shipped within two days, although the first time you order it can take a bit longer as your doctor has to approve them. Many meds can be ordered without a prescription, although they are a bit higher-priced. It all depends on your insurance coverage, or lack thereof. 

        Even better for me because I'm on Medicare, is Wellcare, an online provider recommended by my insurance agent. Wellcare will fill your prescriptions and either ship them to you for free via their Express Scripts service, or have them filled at the pharmacy of your choice (including most of the majors like CVS and Walgreens). Many generic meds such as Metformin and Gabapentin are free, while others are priced very low for a 90-day supply. Even better yet, my premium is just 40 cents a month! I don't know if it's more for non-Medicare patients, nor have I asked. Compared to the $58 a month I was paying before through Humana, and their higher prices for prescription meds, this is a real money-saver. If you want to check on prices before you buy, Wellcare has an online pricing feature that is very easy to navigate. 

        Unfortunately, Amazon and other online retailers are impacting prices and availability of products at drugstores like CVS and Walgreens. But since I don't like driving much anymore, I appreciate having everything delivered to my door within a few days. 

 

MICHELE DAVIS writes: 

I only use the pharmacy for CVS located at 3rd and Washington, in Hillcrest.  It is a drive-through.  My main complaint about all CVS stores is that they no longer have shopping carts.  I need a cart for stability when shopping or walking through the store.  I had to get a booster at the one at 32nd street. The pharmacy is very far from the front door.  Again, no shopping cart to use. Very difficult to get to the pharmacy and then back out of the store. Walgreens also discontinued the availability of shopping carts.  

      Re being contacted for a followup based on review of a business.  I had someone from US Bank actually call me to inquire about my comment that they lack handicapped conveniences.  I explained that the US Bank I go to on Washington Street has one teller for the handicapped.  It has seats for one to sit at while conducting business.  If someone else is doing banking at that station, there is no place to sit and wait.  I literally cannot stand for even 15 seconds without being in dire pain.  The representative wanted to know if there are other areas where they could put a chair or two for a handicapped person to use.  I told her there was ample room immediately to the right of the front door.  She was very polite and indicated she was going to let her supervisor know of this problem and would also contact the branch.  I told her I was shocked that someone actually read those surveys.  She told me they take them very seriously.  Great to know!  

Too much profit?!!

 

Good evening, 919 Gang.  

I offer SPJ’s quote of the week as food for thought (hello, Alden!), from Mr. Craigslist-turned-philanthropic journalistic leader himself: 

 

WORDS OF THE WEEK 

“Investors forget that journalism is a public service. It is really a part of our national security. And instead of serving the country, they’re trying to squeeze too much profit out of it.” 

 

 — Craig Newmark,  

Internet entrepreneur and philanthropist 

 

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CARL LARSEN writes:  

I’m sure that everyone here routinely gets the “opportunity” to complete a “how did we do?” survey after visiting a retailer. Most I quickly  discard. 

But I completed one for CVS the other day, hoping to express my frustrations at being gouged again by the chain’s extortionate  prices such as $9 a bag for candy or a nearly $5 can of Progresso soup. I thought it would fall on deaf ears, but to my surprise I was proved wrong.  

I have a love-hate relationship with CVS, based on shopping at the Friars Road location near Zion Avenue.  

You’d have to be nuts to shop there if you didn’t hold a membership in their loyalty program, which through a series of bonuses and specials cuts some of the pain.  

Need a single container of ibuprophen? Well, open your wallet wide, unless you want to buy two bottles, with one half the price of the first. The same with batteries and a host of other items.  Such a deal!  

CVS, however, is my go-to store because of its national presence, so I can get my drug refills in Florida while traveling or near my daughter’s home in Indiana, as examples. Very convenient.  

I go way back with drug stores here - Thrifty, Sav-on, Payless, Rite-Aid, Chicago transplant Walgreen’s and my favorite, Long’s , which disappeared a while back but which still operates in Hawaii. 

And while down market Thrifty died long ago the ice cream for which it was famous (remember their cheap 5-cent cones, scooped up in store?) still can be found in some groceries.  

 So, I filled out the CVS survey, taking care to detail my complaints. And what then? 

Less than 12 hours later, I got the reply below from the store manager, who is never to be seen when I shop.  

So i now give CVS an A-plus in customer communication and a D-minus in value for money. Now, if they tried five-cent ice cream cones, all would be forgiven.  

Here’s her reply: 

 

Hi Carl, 

I want to follow up with some of your feedback and give you some answers 

 

(1. Lower prices and cut out bogo pricing.) 

I wish I can completely eliminate the sale tags and lower all pricing in our store but unfortunately this matter is completely out of what we can control at store level. 

We are a convenience location therefore our prices will be a little higher than Walmart or Amazon. 

 

(2. Quit making shopping so predictable/ it goes from one holiday to the next.) 

Again, I wish I can skip a couple holiday sets and fill my seasonal aisle with consumables and other products that we sell the most, Because it does gets redundant we switch from Halloween, Christmas, Valentines and Easter within 3 months. AGAIN this is completely out of my control at store level. 

 

(3. staff not at hand to get stuff from locked cabinets.) 

We have Call Buttons located in all of our lock cabinets and as soon as we hear one go off we are there within 20 seconds from when it rings. The lock cabinets are to deter theft of those items specifically. We determine which items get locked based off of historic data from our store and those items get targeted. In order for us to keep them in stock for our customers we have to lock them up. I feel it would be more frustrating having to drive to a store only to find the shelf is completely out of stock. 

 

(4. More private inoculation areas in pharmacy) 

I agree with you on this one, Next time you come by and get any of the vaccinations we offer ask the pharmacist you would like to go to a more private location in my store. I can let them use my office for patients who feel that they need more privacy. I will also communicate this with the pharmacy team to let them know. 

 

(5. Pharmacy got too crowded after the nearby Rite-Aid closed.) 

I also agree with you on this comment. Luckily our location didn't close and we got to keep our jobs. Corporate also noticed the increase in business and also in foot traffic in my store and they are going to do a remodel eventually. They are considering an expansion in our pharmacy. 

These are all the answers I have for your feedback Carl. Most of your concerns are completely out of my control. The only comment we have control over is the lock cabinets but if I take them out we run the risk of having those items be stolen and It would be a lose lose situation for the explanation I provided. 

I personally take customer service VERY VERY VERY serious and I would address any of your concerns (about store operations) IMMEDIATELY to correct any behaviors. 

See you soon Carl 😊 

Sincerely, 

Chris Zaragoza 

store Manager 

 

REBER: Here is an excerpt from a New York Times piece. A link to the whole story is at the end. 

 

“ Cutbacks were just announced at Law360, The Intercept and the youth-oriented video site NowThis, which laid off half its staff. The tech news site Engadget, which comprehensively tracks tech layoffs, laid off its top editors and other staff members. Condé Nast and Time are shedding employees. The continued existence of Vice Media, once valued at $5.7 billion, and Sports Illustrated, in another era the most influential sports publication, is uncertain. The Los Angeles Times and The Washington Post eliminated hundreds of journalists between them. One out of four newspapers that existed in 2005 no longer does. 

The slow crash of newspapers and magazines would be of limited interest save for one thing: Traditional media had at its core the exalted and difficult mission of communicating information about the world. From investigative reports on government to coverage of local politicians, the news served to make all the institutions and individuals covered a bit more transparent and, possibly, more honest. 

The advice columns, movie reviews, recipes, stock data, weather report and just about everything else in newspapers moved easily online — except the news itself. Local and regional coverage had a hard time establishing itself as a paying proposition. 

Now there are signs that the whole concept of “news” is fading. Asked where they get their local news, nearly as many respondents to a Gallup poll said social media as mentioned newspapers and magazines. A recent attempt to give people free subscriptions to their local papers in Pennsylvania as part of an academic study drew almost no takers. …  

“Soon after the printing press emerged in the 15th century, the scriptoriums for copying manuscripts in monasteries rapidly began shutting down,” said Mr. Fidler, now 81 and living in retirement in Santa Fe, N.M. “I’m not very optimistic about the survival of the majority of newspapers in the United States.” 

 

The decline of the news media has been paralleled by the fracturing of American society, which is now as angry and divided as it’s been since the height of the Vietnam War and civil rights protests more than a half-century ago. As the media fell, the noise level rose. 

Perhaps it could have been different. Contrary to the myth that all the newspaper magnates of the 1980s and 1990s thought the good times would last forever, quite a few saw trouble lurking in the far distance. … “ 

 

LINK: https://www.nytimes.com/2024/02/28/technology/news-media-industry-dying.html