Beth Kowitt, Columnist

CVS Shows Women Are Hired to Do Impossible Jobs

All the big US pharmacy companies were once run by women. But in a struggling sector, female CEOs like CVS' Karen Lynch didn't last long.

October 22, 2024 at 11:30 AM UTC

By Beth Kowitt

Beth Kowitt is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist covering corporate America. She was previously a senior writer and editor at Fortune Magazine.

Former CVS CEO Karen Lynch was the last woman standing.
Photographer: Taylor Hill/Getty Images North America

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As recently as last year, pharmacy chains were a bright spot for female leaders — one of the few sectors in corporate America where women could make it to the very top. Rosalind Brewer was CEO of Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc. and, at the time of her appointment, the only Black woman leading a Fortune 500 company. Karen Lynch was running CVS Health Corp., the biggest public company ever helmed by a woman. Heyward Donigan at Rite Aid Corp. rounded out the trio.

Today, all three are gone. Donigan and Brewer were both shown the door in 2023, and Lynch was ousted last week, when CVS announced that the board had unanimously decided to dismiss her after a string of disappointing earnings, repeatedly downgraded forecasts and pressure from investors.