Illinois Pharmacy Chain To Use Timed Safes To Deter Drug Thefts

On Tuesday, CVS Health announced the completed installation of time delay safe technology in all 392 Illinois CVS Pharmacy locations.

The safes are anticipated to help prevent pharmacy robberies by electronically delaying the time it takes for pharmacy employees to open the safe.

Illinois Pharmacies Being Robbed Is A Huge Problem Not Only In Chicago, But Downstate Too

Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul, in making the announcement, said that the installation of the time delay safes, which will involve a code, will make it more difficult for thieves to steal the drugs:

"The code begins a timer and the safe will not open until the timer expires preventing thieves from accessing these drugs."

The Illinois Attorney's General Office reported they are seeing gangs target pharmacies to steal opiates, which they then turn around and sell on the street or online.

CVS Has Seen This Approach Work In Other States

Back in 2015, CVS Pharmacy locations across Indianapolis began experiencing a huge uptick in pharmacy robberies and burglaries. However, after installing the time delay safes, Indianapolis saw a 70% reduction in those types of robberies.

Seeing those results, CVS Health got busy and began installing the time delay safes in 20 states (including Illinois as the latest) and in Washington, DC. While they're not getting a 70% reduction like Indianapolis did, CVS says that their results show a 50% decline in pharmacy robberies and thefts where they've implemented the new procedure.