Walgreens highlights efforts to diversify company

DEERFIELD - Walgreens Boots Alliance Thursday released the company's first global diversity and inclusion report, while also announcing recent efforts aimed at addressing health care disparity in underserved communities.

Walgreens continues to prioritize its COVID testing efforts in underserved communities, with more than 70% of Walgreens testing sites currently located in areas that the Centers for Disease Control and prevention have identified as socially vulnerable.

For the past few years, in an effort to help diversify pharmacy ranks, Walgreens has offered scholarships to diverse candidates at accredited U.S. pharmacy schools. In fiscal 2019, the company provided over $1 million to assist more than 250 students. The scholarship program has expanded to include job placements at Walgreens pharmacies.

Walgreens' supplier diversity efforts are helping a growing number of minority-owned and other diverse businesses serve its stores and operations - and, in the process, growing its businesses and workforce. Walgreens, for example, had bought from more than 2,600 diverse and small businesses, including 900 minority and women-owned businesses, in fiscal 2018.