Davita Rx has submitted a notice to the Texas Workforce Commission (TWC) that it plans to close a facility in Coppell and lay off hundreds of people that work at or report to it.
Walgreens reached a deal to acquire Davita Rx, which is the pharmacy wing of dialysis provider Davita Inc., on July 25.
The pharmacy giant is buying Davita’s non-dialysis prescription files billed as a pharmacy benefit, predominately under Medicare Part D, the company said. The deal is expected to close in September.
A facility at 1234 Lakeshore Drive, Ste. 200 in Coppell will close, resulting in 869 layoffs. In a note to the TWC, Davita Rx President Patrick McKinnon says the “action is expected to be permanent.” The first round of layoffs will begin during a 14-day period starting Sept. 23, the note says.
Davita Rx spokesperson Skip Thurman said Walgreens is in the process of recruiting the impacted employees.
“You can imagine, in a job market as lean as we have right now, these are really valuable teammates,” he said.
In an emailed statement, a Walgreens corporate spokesperson added that the company’s “goal is to offer an opportunity for Davita Rx employees to gain employment at Walgreens where possible.”
“Davita Rx employees will have the opportunity to interview for open positions at existing Walgreens retail store and central facility locations,” he said.
Full statement from Walgreens on the acquisition:
On July 25, we reached an agreement with DaVita Rx, a pharmacy owned by DaVita Inc. to service patients with kidney disease, to purchase DaVita’s non-dialysis related prescription files that are billed as a pharmacy benefit, mostly under Medicare Part D. This prescription file-transfer sale is anticipated to close in September and when the anticipated deal closes, patients who use DaVita Rx’s pharmacy mail services will have the opportunity to transition to become Walgreens retail pharmacy patients. As a neighborhood destination for pharmacy and healthcare services, we know that having convenient access to care is important to patients and, working closely with DaVita Rx, we are committed to making this transition as seamless as possible for these patients.
