Walgreens’ CEO Told Forbes That Listening Is Important. Then The Abortion Pill Saga Erupted

Rosalind (‘Roz”) Brewer became CEO of Walgreens Boots Alliance in one of the largest waves – if not “the” largest” wave – of women appointed to Fortune CEO in the U.S. Her appointment was hailed as a huge breakthrough for women of color to the highest echelons of economic power and influence. Many hoped it heralded in many more appointments of women to the Fortune C-suite.

A study by global executive search firm Heidrick & Struggles found that the first six months of 2021 during which Brewer was appointed CEO, twice as many women were elevated to the lofty Fortune 500 CEO list than ever before, increasing women’s share from 6% to 13%.

Interviewed by Forbes’ Executive Vice President Moira Forbes at the 2021 Forbes Power Women Summit, Brewer said, referring to the covid economy that, “When I think about the last 18 months, all I can think about is how important it is for leaders to have such a strong sense of empathy, listening skills.”

Empathy and listening skills are indeed vital, which includes listening to your customers, as well as to your employees, executives and shareholders. Brewer added in that interview that, “People want to live through their life in terms of what they’re passionate about…(so) what are we going to do as leaders to help them fulfill their dreams and be the best they can be?” Adding that her focus was on asking, “how do we want to make people feel so that they are naturally motivated to be their best?”

Who is Brewer listening to now?

The Guttmacher Institute reports that medication abortion accounts for 54% of all abortions in the U.S. Mifepristone is part of a medication abortion regimen, according to Planned Parenthood.

As one of the few women CEOs of a Fortune 500 company, and one of even fewer women of color at that level, it’s particularly noteworthy to see how she is navigating this terrain – especially with her comments to Moira Forbes about the importance of “empathy” and “listening.”

Since the Dobbs decision from the current U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, abortion rights and treatments have been under attack. The GOP-led legislatures in many states passed anti-abortion legislation.

Attorneys General in over 20 Republican-led states recently sent a letter to Walgreens, the second-largest pharmacy chain in the U.S, threatening the company with legal action if it sold mifepristone through the mail in their states.

Walgreens’ Danielle Gray, Executive Vice President and Global Chief Legal Officer, stated In a letter to Kansas Attorney General Republican Kris Kobach that they are not selling mifepristone at this time. She wrote, “Walgreens has not made any representations about using our mail-order pharmacy business to dispense this drug. Walgreens is not currently dispensing Mifepristone in any of its locations. As you know, to become certified by the FDA, participating pharmacies must satisfy a range of safety and risk mitigation requirements to dispense this drug. At this time, we are working through the certification process, which includes the evaluation of our pharmacy network to determine where we will dispense Mifepristone and training protocols and updates for our pharmacists. Walgreens does not intend to dispense Mifepristone within your state and does not intend to ship Mifepristone into your state from any of our pharmacies. If this approach changes, we will be sure to notify you.”

Walgreens and Brewer are getting a lot of pushback

California Governor Gavin Newson’s office announced on March 8^th – International Women’s Day – that, “California is pulling back its renewal of a multi-million dollar contract with Walgreens, following the company’s preemptive decision not to dispense the abortion medication Mifepristone in 21 states, including states where abortion remains legal. On Monday, Governor Newsom called for the review of all contracts between the State and Walgreens and today’s announcement is a result of that ongoing review.”

It added that, “California will not stand by as corporations cave to extremists and cut off critical access to reproductive care and freedom,” said Governor Newson. “California is on track to be the fourth largest economy in the world and we will leverage our market power to defend the right to choose.”

Other backlash followed, including from U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), who wrote in a letter to Brewer, “The law is clear that medication abortion is legal in Kansas, Iowa, Montana, and Alaska — all states where it appeared that Walgreens, in response to saber-rattling from anti-abortion extremists — would not be providing it,” the senator wrote. “The refusal to dispense a medication that is legal and safe to patients in need would be a betrayal of your customers, and your commitment ‘to champion the health and well-being of every community in America.’ ” Warren and other Senators are asking Walgreens to disclose the list of states where they are seeking certification to sell it.

Brewer’s internal memo

In an internal memo to employees, obtained by Yahoo Finance, which was sent around the same time, Brewer sought to assure them that Walgreens will sell mifepristone in states where it’s legal. She wrote in part, according to Yahoo Finance, “I understand that our team members, patients and customers have deeply-held beliefs on this issue, and we must be very respectful of those beliefs.”

She added that, “I want to be very clear about what our position has been all along: Walgreens plans to dispense mifepristone where it is legal, and not to dispense mifepristone where it is illegal.”

Who is Brewer listening to now? The Walgreens lawyers, it sounds like.

Note: This article was updated to clarify that Walgreens says they are not selling mifepristone yet.