NY AG: 5 Cos To Provide Pharmacy Foreign Language Instructions
2009年4月22日 - 1:13AM
Dow Jones News
Five more chain stores, including Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (WMT) and
Target Corp. (TGT), have agreed to provide non-English speaking
customers in New York with prescription medication instructions in
their primary languages, New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo
said Tuesday.
In a statement, Cuomo said Target, Wal-Mart, Duane Reade Inc.,
Costco Wholesale Corp. (COST) and Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea
Co. (GAP), which operates A&P Supermarkets, have agreed to
counsel all pharmacy customers about prescription information in
their own language.
The stores will also provide written translations in Spanish,
Chinese, Italian, Russian and French.
"The need to understand prescription information can literally
be a matter of life and death," Cuomo said in a statement. "There
are over one million people in New York who don't speak English as
their first language, and this agreement will ensure they have the
medical information needed to protect their health and well-being
and that of their families."
Last year, CVS Caremark Corp. (CVS) and Rite Aid Corp. (RAD)
reached agreements with Cuomo's office to provide translation
services to their customers in New York.
The agreements follow an undercover probe by Cuomo's office into
the policies and procedures of New York pharmacies. Cuomo said the
probe found that pharmacies routinely fail to advise non-English
speaking customers in a language that allows them to understand the
purpose, dosage and side effects of their medications.
Pharmacists are required under New York law to provide
information about prescription drugs to patients orally and in
writing, Cuomo said. They're also prohibited from discriminating
against non-English speakers, he said.
Under the agreements the stores will inform customers of their
right to free assistance in understanding their prescription
medication, provide prescription labels and instructions in the six
languages that are spoken by more than 1% of the population of New
York and provide additional assistance in all languages.
CVS and Rite Aid have provided additional language assistance
through a service called Language Line.
The agreements will affect more than 700 pharmacies operated by
Target, Wal-Mart, Duane Reade, Costco and A&P in New York.
-By Chad Bray, Dow Jones Newswires; 212-227-2017;
chad.bray@dowjones.com