Father, son denied service at NH pharmacy

DERRY, N.H. -- Fear of the flu is said to be the reason a pharmacy cashier denied service to a father and son in New Hampshire.

Upon leaving the doctor’s office, Scott Sullivan made a stop at a local Walgreens with his son Brenden who was suffering from the flu.

Brenden was wearing a mask as the two waited in line to pay for some medicine and juice. The cashier then asked why he was wearing a mask.

“I have the flu. So she backed up and said, ‘Ok I’m not going to ring you up,’” Brenden said.

“She goes, ‘I’m not putting my life in danger over this. I’m not dying,’” Scott Sullivan said.

Brenden’s father had to calm his son, who began asking if he was going to die.

Scott alerted the manager who ordered the cashier to ring them up. Walgreens has since apologized.

“I did get a phone call apologizing. They said they are going to train some of their employees better,” Scott said.

Walgreens provided a written statement to 7News that read, “Walgreens sincerely apologizes to these valued customers for the incident that occurred. It is in no way representative of our commitment to exemplary customer service, and we have since addressed the issue with the employee involved. Millions of customers rely on Walgreens every day and it's our mission to help them find a way to get well and to stay well. We regret that this very rare and isolated incident occurred.”

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