Door Wide Open for Supplement Suppliers

In recent years CVS has been making considerable strides in rebranding its stores to include more health and drug options. The company stopped selling tobacco products in 2014 and has been adding more health clinics to their existing locations. CVS acquired Aetna (a deal that closed in 2018 but has not gained federal approval) with the intent of providing general medical coverage at a lower cost to its customers. This month, the company announced plans to stop selling supplements and vitamins unless the drugs have been tested by a third party for safety and label accuracy.

CVS Historical Sales

This new development is the next step in CVS’s attempts to rebrand as a health-conscious company and offer lower cost alternatives to traditional ways of acquiring medical care. Since the FDA does not require testing for vitamins and supplements, there have been criticisms in the past that not all label information and side effects are accurate. Many products are being sold that claim to offer symptom relief or weight loss when in actuality, the drugs could be doing more harm than good. Since CVS is focused on providing their customers with accurate, safe products they can trust, the new policy makes sense; and although the redesign might be bad news for some product makers, it also opens the door to a whole new set of suppliers who are looking to get their products on CVS shelves.